Land Of Devistation

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USERDOC User Manual
USERNEW New features in this version of LOD
USERQCK Quickstart Documentation
LODWALK Walkthrough of LOD
GTERM GTERM Terminal information
Q&A Questions and Answers
@@USERDOC
Land Of Devastation
By Scott M. Baker
Objective
---------
What are you here to do? How do you win the Game? What is the meaning
of life? For answers to these questions, please see the game objective
command in the documentation center.
Section 1.1: Character Basics
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Each player in LOD has one and only one character with which to explore
the game. You're given a character at logon time and you keep that character
until it dies - at which point you may make a new character, regenerate the
dead one, or a few other options.
The main features of a character are the attributes and the inventory.
Attributes are numeric representations of your characters abilities and
physical characteristics. The inventory is the collection of items that your
character is carrying at any given moment.
In addition to the inventory that you are carrying (think of it as
being stored in a "backpack"), there are also several equipped items.
Equipped items are special items that you have readied and are prepared to
use at a moments notice.
Section 1.2: Attributes
----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Your character has four basic attributes. These are strength (STR),
dexterity (DEX), agility (AGL), and health (HITS). These attributes determine
your strengths and weaknesses when it comes to combat.
* STRENGTH
Strength effects how hard you can hit with your weapons. The higher
your strength, the more damage you will do in hand-to-hand combat.
* DEXTERITY
Your ability to hit what you are aiming at. The higher your dexterity
in relation to an opponents agility, the better your odds of hitting that
opponent.
* AGILITY
Your ability to run away, dodge attacks, and perform certain actions
in combat. The better your agility in relation to an opponent's dexterity,
the better your odds of performing these actions.
* HEALTH/HITPOINTS
Your current hit points are your life. Hitpoints are divided into two
numbers in the format "xx/yy" or "xx of yy". The first number is always the
number of hitpoints that you presently have. The second is the maximum number
of hitpoins that you can accumulate. For example, 20/25 would mean your
character has 20 out of a possible 25 hitpoints.
There is one other attribute that is not directly related to your
character's physical characteristics. It is EXPERIENCE. Experience is the
sum of all the knowledge that you have gained from combat encounters and
special quests. The more you play and fight, the more experience you will
gain.
The LEVEL of your character is derived from the experience. Every so
often, you will accumulate enough experience points to "go up a level". When
you rise a level, you will be allowed to apply additional points to your
basic attributes.
Section 1.3: Experience/Level table
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Level Experience
----- ----------
1 0
2 1250
3 2500
4 5000
5 10000
6 20000
7 40000
8 80000
9 160000
10 320000
11 480000
12 640000
13 800000
14 960000
When you have enough experience to gain a level, report directly to
Sacre Base. As soon as you arrive, you will be given the option of training
for various attributes.
When training, you may allocate your training points however you wish
to Strength, Dexterity, Agility, Hit Points, or trade training points for
cash. Cash is usually a poor idea since levels become increasingly difficult
the further you progress. Your best bet to attain cash is by salvaging
equipment from the wasteland.
There are several different special quests which can be accomplished
out in the wastelands. A quest could be as simple as delivering a special
item to a certain place or as complicated as having to locate and slay a
particular monster. It's up to you to discover what these quests are!
Completing a special quest usually has the following benefits:
1) An experience bonus.
2) Accumulation of quest points - gives you a certain amount of
"prestige" in the quest points section of the rankings.
3) A special item - many quests result in you gaining a special item
or learning a useful clue about the game.
Section 1.4: Team Play
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From time to time, it has been noticed that soldiers have grouped
themselves together to form "teams". These teams provide a number of
benefits:
1) Smart Mines which are placed by one team member will not explode
when another member enters the area.
2) Team members will be able to see each others fortresses using
the fortlist ROM as well as teleport to each others fortresses
without any fee (regardless of the list-with-traders-union
option)
3) Teams with 2 or more members will get an automatic 5% team discount
at all city stores.
4) Team members can bypass other teammate's fortress TOLL and PROX
systems without harm.
5) The bank will grant larger loans to players who are on a team based
upon the combined value of the team members.
Options for team play can usually be found at the troop quarters of any
city.
Section 1.5: Equipped items
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Items are equipped by use of the Q)-equip command. You may only
select the appropriate type of item for the appropriate equipment slot.
* CLOSE COMBAT WEAPON
Please see the chapter on combat.
* RANGED COMBAT WEAPON
Please see the chapter on combat.
* ARMOR
Please see the chapter on combat.
* AUX-WEAPON/SHIELD
Please see the chapter on combat.
* MEDICAL LINING
Medical lining is a special suit that you wear underneath your armor.
It is kind of an automated medkit. While you are moving about, the medical
lining pumps you full of chemicals, increasing your hit points as you move.
Medical lining is rated in terms of hit points per 50 moves. So 5/50
medline would be one hit point regenerated per every 10 moves. The following
classes of medical lining are available directly at Sacre Base:
STD. MEDLINE: 1/50 (1 hit regenerated per 50 moves)
ADV. MEDLINE: 5/50 (1 hit regenerated per 10 moves)
* LAPTOP
The GS-224 laptop was specially designed to assist adventurers out in
the wasteland. It is capable of performing a variety of useful function. The
basic Laptop come pre-configured with only the essential commands. To add new
programs to your laptop, you will have to purchase or otherwise obtain "ROM
Cartridges". ROM Cartridges may be copied with the laptop's "COPY" command.
We highly suggest purchasing the Laptop and the following ROMs as soon
as it is convenient for you:
NOTES: Keeps an online notebook of the locations of important places
that you visit.
CSTATS: Extremely handy. Displays useful information about your
weapons, armor, and other combat statistics. Can be used to
scan your inventory to find out which weapons are better
than others.
DIET: An automatic diet maintenance program. No more worrying about
when to each rations.
APPRAISE: Displays the relative costs of items in your inventory. Costs
displayed are the "new purchase price" and the price paid by
Sacre Base may be significantly less. The APPRAISE ROM is
nevertheless a useful tool in determining what items are
valuable and what is not.
For more information about the Laptop and it's ROMs, we suggest you
visit the Sacre Base Tavern. There is usually someone there who can be of
assistance.
Section 2.1: The Map and Terrain System
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The "world" in LOD is composed of a series of interconnected maps.
One map, termed the "main" map, represents the ground level of the earth.
This is the map in which most travel and exploration takes place. Almost all
of the other maps are linked in some way or another to the main map.
The main map is usually 125x125 squares in size. Each square
represents some arbitrary measurement of land. A square could represent an
acre, a square mile, or virtually anything that the imagination allows.
Travel is usually performed by moving in a compass direction (N/S/E/W) from
one square on the map to another.
Each map square has a particular type of terrain associated with it.
Common terrain types include "roads", "plains", "forrest", and "mountains".
Some terrain types, such as plainse, can be traversed easilly and with no
special equipment. Others, such as rivers and lakes, require special devices
(such as a miniraft) to cross them. There are also impassible terrain types,
such as impassible mountains and dense forrests that cannot be traversed
no matter what equipment the player carries.
Due to the visibility limitations of humans, only a small window of
the map is displayed at one time. This window is approximately 5 squares
by 5 squares in size, although it can be configured to 3x3 if modem speed
is a problem. The player is always located in the center of the 5x5 window,
and the window will move automatically with the player. There are several
different map display modes available:
SVGA: (graphics mode)
SVGA graphics are the preferred method, assuming that your equipment
supports the graphics and you have properly configured the software. SVGA
is always available on the sysop-side (host) of the connection if the sysop
desires. However, use on the remote side (user) requires using the GTERM
terminal program. (more on this later)
With SVGA, you will see a small "picture" of each terrain type in the
5x5 map window. This is by far the best and easiest to navigate. Certain
terrain types, such as walls and roads will be automatically "connected" to
make following them easier.
ENHANCED ANSI: (text mode)
With enhanced ansi, the map display will be held permanently in place
at the top of the screen. Graphics will update as you move, but the screen
generally does not "scroll" down. It's the preferred mode for those who do
not use SVGA. Enhanced ansi is available in 5x5 or 3x3 configurations.
STANDARD TEXT: (text mode)
This is the most primitive and least-desirable display method. It is
limited to a 3x3 grid. A new map is drawn every time you move and the
whole mess scrolls down the screen. However, if for some reason you support
neither the SVGA or ANSI modes, you can always fall back to this one.
Section 2.2: Text Symbols
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If you use either the ENHANCED ANSI or STANDARD display modes (ie
anything but SVGA), then you will have to contend with the text map symbols.
The text symbols are meant to be symbolic representations of the type of
terrain that is present. Each text symbol is two characters in size.
If ANSI is supported, then the text symbols are also colored. These
colors have been chosen to make things a bit clearer. For example, green
is used to represent plains and blue is used to represent water. YELLOW is
almost always used to represent enter-able locations such as cities, stores,
etc.
The best way to learn the symbols is to just move around the map. The
name current terrain that you are standing is always displayed next to the
scanner. Pretty soon you'll learn em all!
Plains -- Wide, open grasslands; Usually quite safe.
Impass. Mtn MM Impassable mountains. No way to get around em!
Desert .. Hot temps and dust storms make travelling dangerous.
Mountains mm Low mountains; Easily climbable, but not too safe.
Road || Pre-war highways - monsters usually stay clear.
Wasteland ww Areas severely damaged by nuclear radiation - stay clear!
River ~~ Flowing water - can be crossed if you have a raft.
Swamp "" Swamps - very unsafe.
Rad-zone rr Direct nuclear strike. Very, very hazardous
Forest ff Thick, woody forests - UNPASSABLE!
Hut HT Small huts occupied by rural dwellers
Towns xx (xx is a number) sends you to a new town map
Red Pylon /\ Several located, but their function is unknown.
Green Pylon /\ Several located, but their function is unknown.
Store ST A generic city store
Wasteland Exit WL An exit from a city into the wastelands
Bank $$ Good place to transfer funds
Hort. Center HS True nature unknown; Rumored to exist.
Phaser Cache PC True nature unknown; Rumored to exist.
Clone Center CC True nature unknown; Rumored to exist.
Nuclear Silo NS True nature unknown; Rumored to exist.
EEEE EE True nature unknown; Rumored to exist.
Kill, Inc KI True nature unknown; Rumored to exist.
Comm Tower CT True nature unknown; Rumored to exist.
Section 2.3: Dealing with Towns
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You'll encounter several towns, villages, and cities in the
wastelands. To enter a town, you'll need to use the "G" key when you're on
the proper map square. "G" stands for "Go".
Some towns require something special to be done before you can enter.
Usually they'll tell you what this is, but sometimes they can be somewhat
vague. If you get stuck trying to get into a particular town, then you may
wish to post a message asking for help. Usually someone else in the game
has already figured it out.
When you enter a town, you'll switch to the town map. The town map
is presented at a somewhat different scale -- rather than map squares being
an acre or square mile, in towns they represent a much smaller size, perhaps
a square yard.
Towns typically have roads that lead from the entrance to various
places of interest. Civilian dwellings and unimportant locations have
typically been "left out" of the town maps - only important locations such
as stores, banks, taverns, etc are presented. Mots twon maps are small and
the typical player should be able to fully explore them pretty quickly.
Some towns, such as Sacre Base, will charge high-level players rent
for staying within. If this rent is not paid on-time, then access to the
city may be refused. The rent account may always be paid at any bank in any
city.
Although much of the previous civilization was destroyed by the great
nuclear war, one custom has survived: Tax Collection. For some unknown
reason, the political leaders of each of the wastelands towns have all agreed
to charge high level players taxes. These taxes will be re-distributed
nightly to all players. Redistributed taxes are dumped in the "standard
account" any may be retrieved by visiting any city bank.
Section 2.4: Things you'll find in towns
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Towns include all sorts of exciting places. Sacre base itself has
many locations to enter. You are encouraged to visit them all and learn what
they are about. Some of the more generic entities that are available in
most cities are discussed below. (ANSI users remember: G)o-able locations
are almose always represented by yellow colored symbols)
* TAVERN: (ansi "TV")
Most, if not all, of the towns have taverns in them. Taverns are the
local hangouts for the prominent town citizens. Most taverns will welcome you
openly and most citizens will talk freely about themselves. The first thing
you should do when you enter a new town is to thoroughly question everyone
in the taverns.
When talking to a character, the character will respond to various
"hot words" - for instance, asking someone about "JOB" or "NAME" will usually
yield a response with the appropriate information. These hot words are
hilighted in RED for ansi users or capitolized in all-caps for non-ansi
users.
* STORE: (ansi "ST")
Towns almost always have stores in them where the local merchants and
traders have items for sale. These stores can be a great source of equipment
that is not available at Sacre Base.
* TROOP QUARTERS: (ansi "TQ")
Every town has a troop quarters. The troop quarters is sort of a
catch-all for utility functions that you may need to perform. For example,
viewing the log or the rankings and adjusting your ANSI options.
* BANKS: (ansi "$$")
Every society has them - the bankers and tax collectors. Even after
a total collapse of government, these instituations still reamin functional.
Banks have several functions available, such as savings account and low-
interest loans. The "rent" account can also be paid here.
Section 2.5: Other Map Notes
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The map is full of unusual places to discover and explore. Always
proceed with caution, but don't be afraid to try new places.
Large specialty stores have been known to exist directly on the main
map. Commonly known ones are the EEEE which sells advanced weapons and
ACME Weapons which boasts a full-time weaponsmith and technician available
for custom weapon modifications. There is a horticulture center out there
somewhere that deals exclusively with advanced food products.
A transportion network of pylons is out there. Pylons are not very
well understood and little documentation exists on them. The only facts are
that they commonly require a "keycard" of some sort and usually have a
sequence of buttons that must be pressed in the correct order to select a
destination point.
Beware of objects that are scattered about. Sometimes extremely
dangerous mines may be encountered. These mines will appear exactly as normal
objects to your scanners and to the naked eye. It's only when you get close
to them that they will detonate and make a serious mess of you!
You may encounter fortresses at certain locations. Fortresses can be
thought of as sort of miniature cities. Most do posess stores that items
may be purchased from. As opposed to cities, fortresses do not posess their
own maps - they are navigated by means of a series of menus. Fortresses are
usually heavilly defended with advanced weapons, moats, and defense shields.
Some fortresses even have "toll booths" and "prox sensors" that will firing
on passing travellers!
Section 2.6: Map system commands
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The map system (also termed the "wastelands menu") has several command
options that are available:
North...: N or 8 Pick Up Item: P Enter.........: G
South...: S or 2 Drop Item...: D Camp out here.: A
East....: E or 6 Check Status: C Construct fort: F
West....: W or 6 Equip.......: Q Enter Fort....: I
Look....: L or 5 Use Item....: U Inv Maint.....: M
Kill Obj: K Quick Heal..: Y B.A.D. Spell..: B
Most of those commands are self-explanatory, but a few of them deserve
some special attention:
ENTER (g)
The enter command will not only get you into towns, but other
locations as well - fortresses, camps, special places, pylons,
whatever. When in doubt about a new location, you might as well try
to enter it.
KILL OBJ (k)
This command will allow you to permanently "kill" an object on the
wasteland. For example, if there is a "dagger" laying in front of
sacre base and it has been annoying you, you can kill it.
EQUIP (e)
You need to use this one to equip your weapons, armor, etc.
USE ITEM (u)
This is one of the most important commands in the game. Certain
items that you are carrying must be U)sed in order to activate
them. For example, U)sing a medkit will heal your character.
If you select the "list" option from the U)se prompt, the game will
present a listing of the usable items that you are carrying. Non-
usable items will not be listed. This is a quick and easy way to
figure out which items are use-able.
Alternatively to typing the number of the object in your inventory
to use, you can also type the first few letters of the item name.
For example, you could type "MED" to use a medkit, or "TRI" to
use a tricorder.
QUICK HEAL (y)
Rather than use the USE (u) command multiple times on a medkit to
heal yourself, you can use the Y command to automatically use as
many medkit doses as are necessary to heal you.
PICK UP (p)
There is a special power-user option for those of you carrying
energy cells (Vortex cell, kralox cell, etc). If you type the
word "cell" at the item number prompt, then LOD will automatically
pick up all ammo at the current location and charge your energy
cell with it.
"ALL"
On the Kill obj (K), Pick Up (P), and Drop (D) commands, you can
say "ALL" when prompted for an item number and LOD will attempt the
command on all available items.
Section 3.1: The Basics of Combat
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Combat is a fact of life -- the wastelands are not a safe place. This
chapter has been assembled to briefly explain the most popular combat styles
and tactics. Those who do not posess a thorough understanding of the aspects
of modern combat tactics will not survive long.
Under most circumstances you encounter, combat will occur in two
distinct phases: Long Range and Close Combat. Understanding the different
aspects of these two phases is essential to your success.
LONG RANGE COMBAT occurs when the participants are at a significant
distance. Several options are available at this phase, the most common of
which are firing a ranged weapon or throwing a radiation grenade at the
enemy. In most cases once one of these options is executed, combat will
proceed to the close combat phase.
CLOSE COMBAT occurs when the opponents are engaged in a hand-to-hand
situation. Either the fist is used to strike blows or (perferably) a bladed
weapon is used. Close combat continues until one of the participants is
either killed, escapes, or surrenders.
Now that you understand the basic foundations of combat, you may be
wondering, against whom are you to use your newfound skills? Have no fear,
the wastelands are filled with plenty of opportunities for you to kill
something!
The most common combat advesary is the monster. "Monster" is a generic
term meaning any intrinsicly hostile creature that habits the wasteland. The
wasteland is full of such individuals. They range from mindless animals such
as the Rad-Hound, to such complex entities as the Priesthood of Loki of whom
posess the power to levitate and the weapondry to incinerate a recruit before
he even knows what happened. Monster encounters generally occur at random -
You'll be walking along and something will just jump out right in front of
you!
You may also find that at times there may be another inhabitant of
Sacre Base with whom you disagree. Or perhaps someone who's been showing off
some nice weapon or equipment. While it is generally discouraged to go around
"offing" other adventurers, it does happen quite frequently. Please note that
all combat within Sacre Base is strictly prohibited. If you want to kill
somebody, you'll need to find them unprotected in the wastelands. They may
either be camped or holed up inside a fortress. If the latter is the case,
then you will need to infiltrate the fortress in order to reach your
prey.
Throughout the wastelands, you will notice occasional fortresses
constructed to protect the owner and his valuables from outside dangers.
These fortresses may be conquered, but the process of taking a fortress may
be long and arduous. It may even require a team of warriors to drain the
fort's defenses to the point that they may be breached. Taking a fortress
does produce great rewards -- if you don't want to keep the fortress for
yourself, then you may easilly sell it's equipment for a health profit.
Section 3.2: Ranged Weapons
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Long range combat necessitates the existance of long range weapons.
The typical long range weapon contains a sighting system which is fixed
upon the target and then a trigger is depressed which will consequently
fire a projectile of some sort at target.
The type of projectile and means of propulsion depend on the type of
weapon that is used. For example, a crossbow uses a wire and tension system
to launch a crossbow bolt. A 9mm clip pistol uses an exothermic gunpowder
reaction to propell a bullet at a high velocity. More advanced weapons,
termed "energy weapons" use energy of some means to send forth a stream of
sub-atomic particles (photons, neutrons, and gravitons are commonly used).
Most LR weapons are capable of launching only one projectile at a
time. However, technologies such as the "three round burst" and "grenade
launched" are also available which provide the user with additional
technologies. We recommend contacting the weaponsmith at ACME weapons for
more information on these advanced subjects.
The amount of damage done by a long range weapon is determined solely
by the characteristic properties of the device. The user's attributes have
no effect on the extent of the damage inflicted. The accuracy, however, does
depend significantly on the ratio of the dexterity of the user as compared
to the agility of the target. A higher user dexterity will increase
accuracy. A higher target agility will decrease accuracy.
The other commonly used offensive technique is the throwing of a
radiation grenade in the direction of an enemy. As with conventional weapons,
the damage inflicted is solely dependant on the characteristics of the
grenade. However, due to the large blast radius of a grenade, accuracy is
100% guarenteed.
Section 3.3: Close Combat Weapons
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Close combat weapons (also referred to as "short range weapons" or
"SR" weapons) are used in close combat. This type of weapon is not required
(the user may inflict blows directly with his fist), but is highly
recommended due to the increase in damage inflicted by a bladed weapon.
Close combat weapons are almost always bladed devices of some sort.
Contrary to ranged weapons, no projectile is fired. Damage is inflicted by
physically striking the target with the weapon.
Close combat weapons are not necessarilly restricted solely to simple
bladed instruments such as knives or swords. The blade may be charged with
energy which will inflict a superior amount of damage when it comes into
contact with the target. These types of weapons are referred to as "energy
weapons". Many techniques exist for charging energy weapons. The most common
energy weapons are the ElectoBlade, ElectroSword, and ElectroLance. They are
the energy weapon version of the Dagger, Sword, and Razorlance respectively.
The damage inflicted by close combat weapons is proportional not only
to the characteristic properties of the weapon itself, but also the strength
of the user. Is a general rule, as the strength of the user doubles, the
damage infliction will increase by approximately 30%.
As with ranged weapons, accuracy of close combat weapons depends on
the user's dexterity in relation to the target's agility. A high dexterity
will produce superior accuracy, while a high agility of the target will
degrade accuracy.
Section 3.4: Procurement of Weapons
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Several popular LR and SR weapons are stocked at the stores in Sacre
Base. It is highly recommended that you stop by these stores and obtain
weapons before proceeding into the wasteland.
NOTE: The damage levels listed in the SR weapons store are the basic
damage levels of the weapon. Remember, SR (short range or close combat)
weapons perform increased damage if the user has increased strength. Thus, if
your strength is above average, then the damage done will be greater than the
base levels listed in the SR weapons store.
IMPORTANT: You must Q)-Equip your weapons before they will be enabled
in combat. Simply carrying around a weapon in your inventory will not do - it
must be equipped. To equip a weapon, press "Q" from the wastelands menu. Then
select the appropriate choice (C for Close or R for Ranged) and select the
desired weapon from your inventory.
Weapons may also be obtained from wasteland inhabitants. Occasionally,
you may encounter a creature that has a particularly desirable weapon. There
are two common ways of obtaining a weapon from the monster. The least risky
is to purchase the weapon. Most, but not all, monsters will readilly sell
their weapon for a reasonable sum of money. The other common method is to
kill the monster and pick up the weapon when he drops it upon the wasteland.
The GS-224 Laptop and C-Stats ROM can prove useful in determining
various properties of weapons. It is recommended that you pick up a laptop
and C-Stats at your earliest convenience from the computer store in sacre
base. C-Stats will report the base damage levels, ammunition requirements,
strength multiplier, and any special features of your weapons.
Section 3.5: Ammunition
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Some weapons require ammunition. The best way to discover what
ammunition a weapon requires is to view it's description with the V)iew
command at store. You can also use a laptop equipped with the C-Stats rom
to determine the ammunition requirements.
If you use a weapon that requires ammunition, then you must carry
around one or more ammunition pack(s) in your inventory. These packs will
automatically be used to supply the weapon with energy. You do not need
to explicitly "load" weapon; just keep an ammo pack in your inventory and it
will be done automatically.
A chart of common weapons and ammunition types follows. This chart is
not exhaustive and many weapons and ammunition types not listed may be
located on various wasteland inhabitants.
Type 1: Crossbow Bolts SR: None
LR: Crossbow
Type 2: 9mm clip SR: None
LR: Clip Pistol, Uzi 9mm
Type 3: Power Pack SR: Electroblade, Electrosword, Electrolance
LR: Phaser-1,2,3 Comp Blaster
Type 4: Grav Pack SR: None known
LR: GravBlaster
Type 5: Plasma Pack SR: None known
LR: PlasmaBlaster
Type 6: Neutron Pack SR: Neutron Sabre
LR: Neutron Rifle
Reports of another type of energy, termed the "cell", have been heard
from adventurers returning from the wastelands. Cells appear to be capable of
storing energy in a generic format, and supplying whatever energy your
particular weapons require. Hence, a cell may be capable of supplying both
power pack energy to an electroblade, as well as gravitons to a gravblaster.
Cells only work on "energy" type weapons. They cannot supply 9mm bullets or
crossbow bolts for example.
Section 3.6: Shields and the Aux Weapon
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In addition to equipping a close weapon, there is an additional slot
in which you may equip an auxilliary weapon or a shield. This slot is
referred to as the "aux weapon" slot. Typically, the item in this slot is
carried in the fighter's left hand, while the primary close weapon is carried
in the right hand.
If a close range weapon is equipped into the aux weapon slot, then you
may switch weapons with the "E" command in the close combat menu. This is
useful in case you have an ammo-requiring close combat weapon equipped and
the weapon runs out of ammo. If you have a non-ammo-requiring weapon in the
aux weapon slot, then you may use the "E" command to switch between them.
If a shield is equipped in the aux weapon slot, then you will gain
some additional defensive capabilities. There is a percentage chance that the
enemy's attack will impact your shield rather than your armor or body. In
this capacity, the shield acts as sort of an armor suppliment. You may also
P)arry the enemy if a shield is equipped.
Using the P)arry option in close combat increases the odds of your
sheild deflecting a blow by 400%. However, you will inflict no damage while
parrying. Parrying may be of use in a situation where a player may wish to
cause the enemy to expend his ammunition reserves. Once the opponent's
ammunition falls critically low, the player would cease parrying and begin
normal attacks against the enemy, who now has a depleted ammo supply.
Section 3.7: Armor
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Armor can be very beneficial to combat. In the case that an enemy's
blow comes in contact with your person, then there is a percentage chance
that your armor may absorb this blow, thus protecting your precious hit
points. Many armor types are available. There are two basic properties of
armor which are of interest: the deflection percent, and the deflection
point capacity.
Deflection Percent is the percentage chance that your armor will
absorb a blow that would normally hit your body. For example, if your armor
had 50% deflection, then you could expect roughly half of the blows to impact
the armor and half to impact you directly.
Damage point capacity is the number of points of damage that the
armor has remaining before it is useless. Each time your armor is hit, it
will lose some of these points. When they reach zero, your armor will no
longer deflect blows at all.
Some armor types may be recharged when their deflection points are
below maximum. The device use to recharge them is usually referred to as a
"recharger". Rechargers are expensive and difficult to obtain, but you may
happen across one in your travels.
The C-Stats ROM can be used to determine the various properties of
your armor. The GS-224 Laptop and the C-Stats ROM may be purchased at the
Sacre Base computer store.
Section 3.8: Long Range Combat in Depth
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
LONG RANGE COMBAT: "L"
This simply fires your ranged weapon at the enemy. You must have a
ranged weapon equipped to use this option. If the weapon requires ammunition,
then you will need to have some ammo in your inventory.
CLOSE COMBAT (hand-to-hand): "H"
This will bypass your long range combat options and proceed directly
to close (hand-to-hand) combat.
THROW GRENADE: "G"
You throw a radiation grenade in the direction of the enemy. Grenade
hits are guarenteed 100% due to the increased blast size. After the grenade
has detonated, close combat will automatically enagage.
RUN: "R"
You attempt to use the age old strategy of running away. If your enemy
has no ranged weapons, he will probably let you go. But, if the enemy does
have a ranged weapon, he may try to take a shot at you.
SURRENDER: "S"
Give him half of your money and he'll probably let you go.
VIEW OPPONENT: "V"
Display your opponent's stats.
VIEW CHARACTER: "C"
Display your current stats.
STRIKE UP CONVERSATION: "T"
For some monsters that look somewhat talkative, this option will
appear and you can talk to the monster. Odds are you can't talk him out of
killing you, but you may be able to gain some vital information from the
monster.
BUY ITEM
Sometimes, you'll notice that a particular enemy has an item that
would be of value to you. Rather than fight for it, you may opt for the more
civilized approach of buying the item. However, monsters are not usually as
generous as the Sacre Base supply station and their prices may be quite high!
Section 3.9: Close Combat in Depth
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
ATTACK: "A"
Charge at the monster with your weapon; Inflict as much damage as
possible while protecting yourself from injury.
BERSERK: "B"
Commit yourself to fighting until death. No aborting! You'll receive a
minimal (about 10%) combat advantage when berserking, but you lose all chance
of stopping in case you begin to lose!
SURRENDER: "S"
Give him some money and hope he goes away.
RUN: "R"
Try to run away. Your chances of successfully running depend on your
agility in relation to your opponents dexterity. Monsters equipped with LR
weapons may shoot you in the back while you're running.
VIEW OPPONENT: "V"
Display your opponent's stats.
VIEW CHARACTER: "C"
Display your current stats.
WARP: "W"
If you are carrying a warper, you can push it's button and get out of
combat fast!
MORE: "M"
There's two combat menus - this toggles between them.
EXCHANGE: "E"
Exchange your primary weapon with your auxiliary weapon. Usefull if
your primary weapon runs out of ammunition. This option may not be used if
you have a shield equipped in your auxilliary weapon slot.
HEAL: "H"
Use a medkit dose. Your odds of successfully using a medkit dose depend
on your agility as opposed to your opponents dexterity.
DEATHPULSE: "D"
If your weapon has the special "deathpulse" feature, then you use this
option to attack in deathpulse mode. Deathpulse conversions are available
from ACME Weapons, Inc.
OPPONENT-CSTATS: "O"
If you have a laptop with the C-Stats ROM loaded on it, then you may
use this command to get a C-Stats report of your enemy. The C-Stats report
may be useful to determine if your enemy has nay special features on his
weapons and/or armor that won't show up in the "V)iew Opponent" command.
PARRY: "P"
If you have a shield equipped in your aux weapon slot, then you can
parry against the opponent. Parrying consists of attempting to block the
attack using your shield. Parrying inflicts no damage on the enemy, but it
increases the odds of your shield deflecting a blow by 400%. Since parrying
inflicts no damage, it is of questionable tactical value.
FLASH
If you are carrying a FlashBomb, then you can throw it at the enemy
to improve the odds of escape.
Section 3.10: Locating Other Human Warriors to Fight
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
As mentioned previously, you may find yourself in a position where
you wish to fight another human warrior. This can sometimes be a difficult
process, as most persons are reasonably skilled at protecting their
location from possible attackers. However, in the event you do wish to
fight another human, these are the steps that should be taken:
1) Enter Sacre Base and thoroughly check out the Sacre Base map. Look
and see if your target has camped inside Sacre Base. If he has, then you
will, of course, be unable to attack him. You might write him a message
letting him know how much of a coward he is for hiding out in Sacre Base.
2) Exit Sacre Base and look around the immediate area. Perhaps your
target didn't make it back into Sacre Base before running out of time. Or
perhaps he just didn't know any better.
3) If you have a scanner device or a LR-Scan, then you might want
to give it a shot. Both of these devices are capable of detecting players
at medium-long ranges. If you posess a tricorder, then it may be of great
use as well.
4) If you happen across a fortress, then your target may be within.
Use the G)o command to visit the fortress and use V)iew to get a look at
it. If the owner listed is your target or one of his teammates, then your
target may reside within. In this case, your only chance of knowing for
sure is to attack the fortress and conquer it.
5) If your you happen across a city, then your target may be camped
within it. Explore the city and find out. Unlike Sacre Base, not all cities
have a "no combat" restriction. If you find your target in the Death Warrior
HQ, for example, then the Death Warriors will probably be more than happy
to watch you battle to the death.
6) Explore the wastelands, repeating steps 2 through 5 until you
find him or get tired of looking.
7) You can always write your target a message telling him you want
to fight. If he's courageous enough, then he'll probably write you a message
with a pre-determined location to fight. If he refuses, make it publicly
known that he has chickened out. Usually someone will come forth to defend
his honor.
There are a few special things to take into consideration when
fighting another human. This type of combat is generally referred to as
"player-vs-player" combat. Firstly and most importantly is the experience is
calculated differently.
When you defeat another player, experience is rewarded according
to the following: "The surplus of the loser's experience over the winners
experience, plus 10% of the losers total experience." Mathematically, this
could be written as the following:
EXP gained = Max(0,loser_exp-winner_exp) + loser_exp*0.10
For example, say you have 10,000 exp and you kill someone who has
15,000 exp. In this case, you have attacked a player with GREATER experience
than yourself. The math works out as follows:
Max(0,15000-10000) + 15000*0.10 { initial formula }
Max(0,5000) + 1500 { ... simplify }
5000+1500 { ... simplify }
6500 { the answer }
Now, let's look at an example of attacking a player with lesser
experience. Let's assume you have 15,000 EXP and you attack someone with
10,000 EXP. The math works out as follows:
Max(0,10000-15000) + 10000*0.10 { initial formula }
Max(0,-5000) + 1000 { ... simplify }
0+1000 { ... simplify }
1000 { the answer }
As you can see, you are rewarded greatly for attacking someone who
is more experienced than you. However, the rewards are fairly poor for
attacking someone who is lesser than you. This is purposely done to
discourage humongous players from attacking novices, and to prevent a few
certain "cheats" that have been used in the past.
Section 4.1: Fortresses
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
Fortresses may be constructed by the prosperous adventurer. There are
several reasons a fortress is useful and several purposes a fortress can
serve:
A PLACE TO HIDE OUT
The wasteland isn't a very nice place. Hiding out in your fortress
can be a great defence against monsters and "competitive" players.
STORAGE VAULT
Every fortress includes a storage vault. You can drop off as many
objects as you like. As long as your fortress remains intact, your
valuables are safe.
SELLING MEDKITS/AMMO and ITEMS
You can designate portions of your medical doses on hand and/or
energy on hand to be "for sale". Players may then visit your
fortress and purchase medkits/ammo for the price that you decide.
If you pick a good location and set your prices right, players
may opt to shop your at your fortress rather than a pricey
town. If your fort is equipped with an energy-producing reactor,
then you can make a healthy profit selling energy!
All forts are equipped with a "sales counter" capable of holding
any eight standard devices. You decide what to sell and what
price to sell it at. Someone in dire need of a Warper may pay
you a healthy price for one!
It should be noted that when trading, other players are held outside
the gates of your fortress. They aren't allowed access to your
vault, treasury, etc.
AVOID RENT
If you are a level eight player or above, then you have probably
already realized that if you stay in any of the towns, you will be
charged rent. And this rent does get expensive.
So, the solution - build your own base and stay in there. It's
safer than hanging out on the wastelands and you don't have to
shell out the cash to pay rent every day.
FACTORIES
You can install factories in your fort for producing a variety
of items such as mines. A factory produces one item per night and
can pay for itself very quickly!
SCAVENGERS
A special "scavenger droid" has been developed especially for
fortress use. Each night, the scavenger droid will venture outside
your fortress and locate any "junk" laying around. The scavenger
droid will sell these items as salvage at 10% of full price!
All that sounds pretty nice, doesn't it? Well, it sounds nice to just
about everyone else as well. So the point is, you'd better protect your
fortress pretty well or somebody uninvited will move in! (and move you
out!) Fortress defensive options:
MOAT
You can dig a moat around your fortress. When somebody wants to
attack, they'll have to get through it. Several different moats
are available - from simple water with a crocodile to flesh-
dissolving acid!
DEFENSE FIELD
Every fortress should purchase a defense field immediately. The
defense field is essentially the fortress's "hit points". When
an attacker defeats the defense field, he is inside. Defense fields
recharge before battle from the fortress's energy stores.
Also, do note that if your base runs out of energy, then there will
be nothing to recharge your defense field if you are attacked.
WEAPON
So what happens while somebody is hacking away at your defense
field? You have a big gun that shoots at him. The better the
fortress weapon, the more damage will be inflicted as the attacker
attempts to beat the defense field.
REACTOR
All this stuff takes power. Your defense field requires energy
to recharge, your base weapon requires energy to fire, etc. So you
might want to have a reactor to build up your daily energy
supply.
MINE SPREADER
These nifty items will take any mines from your forts storage room
and scatter them around your fortress in a random manner. Very
useful for automatically creating mine fields.
PROX SENSORS
Proximity sensors - Your fort is equipped with a weapon, right?
Well, why not blast everyone who walks by!!! The Prox sensor will
let you set your fortress weapon to attack all players who come
within a pre-determined distance of your fort.
TOLL STATIONS
Prox sensors are nice, but there isn't much profit in just blasting
people. How about charging them a "toll" fee. If they pay, they
can continue unharmed. If not..... BLAM!
FORTRESS SFG (Stealth Field Generator)
Hides your fortress from the view of adjacent map cells. The only
way someone can see your fortress is by practically standing right
on top of it!
ROBO-DEFENDER
RoboDefenders protect your fort if the defense field falls. They
are basically just a robot programmed to defend your fortress at
all costs.
Now, the most important thing you have to worry about is supplying your
base with energy. Without energy, your base defense field cannot charge and
your weapon cannot fire. So, how do you get energy?
METHOD #1:
Buy, steal, or otherwise "acquire" ammunition packs. Take the ammo
packs into your fortress configuration room and discharge them
into the fortress power banks.
Any type of energy-based ammunition will do - Power Packs, Grav
Packs, etc. But the projectile-ammo is useless (how would you
discharge some crossbow bolts???)
METHOD #2:
Buy a reactor (described above) and it will generate a generous
amount of energy each day.
Note: You will want to make sure you place a lot of energy in your
fortress when you create it -- There is a tactic becoming increasingly
popular where players will lay siege to a fort by repeatedly attacking
it and running from it, thus draining the fortresses energy reserves
and making it vulnerable to attack!
Section 4.2: Fortress Trading
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
As mentioned above, trading is possible with fortresses. By using the
FORTRESS TRADE CONTROL menu, you can set various options about what you
wish to buy or sell. Here are some quick hints:
SELLING HEALING (MEDKIT) DOSES
First you'll have to "dump" a medkit into your fortress medkit
supply. You can do this from the fortress configuration menu. Then
go back to the fortress trading menu and you can decide how much of
your medkit stocks you wish to put up for sale and how much you
wish to charge per dosage.
SELLING ENERGY (Power Packs)
Like with medkits, go into the fortress configuration menu and
dump some energy into the fortress energy banks (unless you already
have a plentiful supply of energy in the banks). Then go back
to the fortress trade menu and select how much energy you wish to
sell and at what price. Don't sell all your energy, because you
would leave your base defenseless.
BUYING/SELLING THE THREE PRODUCTS (minerals, herbs, fuel)
Not fully implemented yet. Feel free to experiment with the options.
THE SALES COUNTER
Each base has a sales counter. The base owner may place up to eight
items in this sales counter. Other players may then come and buy
them from the base.
SELLING TELEPORTATION
If you equip your base with a teleporter, then you can charge other
players to use your teleporter. You will receive money both when
players depart from and arrive to your base. (Note: You may wish
to use the "List with traders union" so people know where your
base is)
Appendix 1: Common Close Combat Weapons
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
KNIFE
This is pretty lame. Sort of a cross between a butter knife and a steak
knife, it doesn't inflict much damage. However, if you're on a budget, it
is better than nothing.
DAGGER
Basically, the Knife designed specifically for combat use.
SWORD
If you don't know what a sword is, go back to grade school....
RAZORLANCE
The lance is a special variation of a spear. It has razor sharp blades
on both ends. The user usually holds the lance from the middle and can twirl
it in many directions, hitting the attacker with the blades mounted on each
end.
ELECTROBLADE
The electroblade is a dagger that has been electrically charged. It
gets it's power from a POWER PACK and when the target is struck, the
electrical charge dissipates into them, doing enhanced damage. This weapon
does require ammo (POWER PACKS) and will do reduced damage without them.
ELECTROSWORD
The electrosword is an electrically charged version of the sword. Like
the electroblade, it require POWER PACK ammo to function.
ELECTROLANCE
The electrolance is the electrically charged companion of the razor
lance. When properly loaded with a power pack, it can do massive amounts of
damage.
NEUTRON SABRE
A recent experimental prototype using Neutron technology. The Neutron
sabre is a sword-type weapon that uses neutron energy to charge its
blade. Produces an intense burning effect on whatever it hits. Uses
NEUTRON PACKs as armor.
Appendix 2: Common Ranged Weapons
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
CROSSBOW
A purely manually operated weapon. The operator pulls back the string,
sets in a crossbow bolt, aims and fires. It requires crossbow bolts for
ammunition.
CLIP PISTOL
A 9mm clip pistol. You slap a clip in, take aim, and blast a hole in
your enemy. Uses 9mm clips for ammo.
PHASER-1
A hand held phaser weapon. Sends a charged proton beam into the enemy.
Requires power packs for ammo.
PHASER-2
More powerful version of phaser-1.
PHASER-3
More powerful version of phaser-2.
COMP BLASTER
The most powerful power-pack weapon built. Similar to a phaser, but
uses higher efficiency circuitry to achieve a stronger effect.
GRAVBLASTER
This weapon sends a beam of gravitons against the target. The gravitons
create an immense gravitational disruption in the target's cells, causing
the gravitational forces to rip his cell structure apart. Uses gravblast
clips.
PLASMABLASTER
Sends plasma energy into the enemy. Uses plasma clips for ammo.
NEUTRON RIFLE
Experimental prototype. Uses Neutron packs as ammunition to produce
massive damage on whatever it hits.
GRENADE PACK
This is a package of grenades. It is neither a long range nor a close
range weapon. When you enter combat, you have the choice of throwing a
grenade at your foe instead of firing a weapon. Grenades have the advantage
of almost always hitting the opponent and their damage can go right through
an opponent's armor.
Appendix 3: Misc. Items
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
RADIO
This two-way field radio can be used to tie into the base's
communications system. You can send and leave messages just as if you were
sitting in the safe comfort of the base.
LR SCAN
The LR Scan is a very useful device. What it does is tie into the ZR327L
military surveillance satellite and generate a satellite picture of the
surrounding terrain. Very handy if you get yourself lost.
MEDICAL KIT
The medical kit contains a number of self-contained "healing" drugs.
One quick shot from one of these drugs can do wonders for a person's
injuries. (These wonder drugs were actually created in 1973, but held up
in various government agencies for 70 or so years)
RATIONS
A package of poorly tasting, but very nourishing troop rations. Mostly
gathered from the remains of dead beasts, it tastes pretty bad, but is
very necessary to your survival.
SCANNER
This is a hand-help radar scanning unit. It can give you a quick idea
of the type of terrain around you as well as locate prominent establishments
such as towns.
STEALTH FIELD GENERATOR
The SFG is a unique product of modern technology. It allows you to
create a field around your person which can either interfere positively
(amplify) or negatively (cancel out) the noise that you create. Since many of
the wasteland creatures are dependant upon noise as a means of locating
targets, you can either increase or decrease your encounter chances with this
device.
LAPTOP
The GS-224 Laptop is a very valuable instrument when equipped with the
necessary programs. You can buy a laptop at sacre base as well as software
for the laptop. I'll leave it to you to discover what the laptop does. (Try
talking to TROY HADLEY at the Sacre Base Tavern)
MINIRAFT
In case you should need to cross some rivers or lakes, then the
Miniraft may be of some use to you.
Appendix 4: Credits
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
SHANE CHAMBERS ANSI and EGA graphics designer.
MARK COX Author of MOD-OBJ, the code that was used to provide
.MOD music support to LOD.
CHRIS AZURE Composer of most of our MOD music.
CHRISTOPHER DARQUE Lots of EGA pictures, some plot ideas, and some
great beta testing.
RICK ARMSTRONG EGA Pictures
DAVE ROSSON EGA Pictures
DOUG MERHA EGA Pictures
RAY BACON Set up the LAND echo for us!
@@GTERM
Gterm: The LOD EGA Graphic Terminal
-----------------------------------
In case you aren't using Gterm at this time, then this document is
provided to explain GTERM's benefits, requirements, and capabilities. If
you are using GTERM, then you need not read this file.
GTERM REQUIREMENTS
First of all, we need to make sure your machine is equipped to run
GTERM. You need:
VIDEO: SVGA 800x600x256 or above; Minimum of 500k of video memory
RAM: about 384k or so
DISK: ten megs would give you plenty of room
MODEM: 2400+ recommended
CPU: 386 processor required.
WHAT IS GTERM?
What is Gterm? Well, it is an SVGA graphical terminal for the Land Of
Devastation door game. Basically, it takes the plain ascii/ansi interface
and adds some nice graphics to enhance playing. Instead of seeing little ".."
and "MM" symbols for the wastelands map, you will see 16 color ega pictures
in their place.
GTERMs graphics basically cover two areas: The map grid and the
inventory display. Is explained above, the map grid will display the map
in full EGA color with none of those bland looking symbols. Similarly, the
inventory display will show you pictures of your inventory rather than
simple text.
GTERM also includes a few other utilities - a rankings capture, LR
scan capture, and a rankings profile to name a few. These are explained
further in the GTERM documentation.
It should also be noted that on an 8mhz+ machine, display may be
actually FASTER than the normal text. The graphical interface uses a
binary method to transfer data between LOD and GTERM versus the text method
used by a normal terminal program.
SPECIFIC BENEFITS OF USING GTERM
1] As stated above, your map display and inventory listings will
be displayed using EGA pictures rather than text symbols.
2] Certain ANSI displays used in LOD (i.e. the color menus and such)
are also stored with GTERM. LOD can "call up" these pictures so
they will appear instantly rather than having to send all of the
ANSI data across the modem. For 2400 baud and below users, this
is a great speed up.
3] A few miscellaneous utilities - a rankings capture, a rankings
profile capture, etc.
4] In many cases, playing using GTERM on a slow modem (i.e. 2400
or lower) will result in faster game play.
5] Monster pictures - we have drawn up several nice pictures of the
monsters which you encounter out in the wastelands. These SVGA
pictures pop up over the map window to show you our idea of
what you are fighting.
6] ADLIB/SOUNDBLASTER support. GTERM supports full MOD music. There
is quite a large musical score for LOD, composed primarily by
Chris Azure.
WHAT DOES IT TAKE TO SET UP GTERM?
Basically, the simplest way to set up GTERM is by installing it as
an "external protocol" to your terminal program. Then, just select that
protocol when you go into LOD and you will be up and running in full EGA
color.
WHERE CAN YOU GET GTERM?
Most boards that have LOD up for download also have GTERM sitting
around somewhere. If you can't find it or you want the most recent version,
then you may contact the authors bbs at:
The Not-Yet-Named bbs
(520) 544-4655 1200/2400/9600 (V.32)
(520) xxx-xxxx 2400/9600/14400 (USR DUAL) (temporarily down)
@@USERNEW
Whats New!
This file is intended for players and will contain a listing of major
playing differences from previous versions. This is for players who have
played before and want to know what has changed that will effect
them.
-------------------------------------------------------------------------
[Version 5.11]
This release was mostly just a bugfix and general update, so there are not
many significant changes to game-play.
Two new games are available in the Casino - Double-Up and Video Poker.
You can now steal from camped players.
[Version 5.00]
This release has some MAJOR changes. The user documentation has been almost
completely rewritten and I suggest you stop by the doc center and give it a
thorough reading.
You'll probably find a few new locations out there, including the much
anticipated Holostore and Sam's Super Surplus Stores.
The "towns" all have seperate town maps now -- there is no "base operations"
menu for the towns anymore. To log off in a town, just enter the town and use
the A)-camp command. If you camp in Sacre Base, then you will be
automatically protected against attacks.
There are a lot more weapons upgrades available at ACME weapons. Some of the
new weapon features may be found on monsters and/or forsale at various
locations as well.
Several new devices and items have been added. Of particular interest is
the Warper Waypoint Manager, Tricorder, and Hypervault. There are also
several new ROM cartridges.
The Casino has some new slot machines and some additional trivia tables.
Playing the slots CAN be very profitable, especially if you find a certain
item that will throw the odds in your favor!
If you die while attacking a fortress, then the fortress will take any
inventory that you drop and place it in the fort's storage room. So, be
CAREFUL while attacking forts!
[Version 4.20]
The major changes for this version is the switch to 800x600x256 SVGA mode
for GTERM and LOD/VGA. Some bugs have also been fixed.
The MAPPER device now has a simple ANSI format so that non-gterm users may
now make some use of it.
ANSI players now have a 5x5 map grid option. You can toggle between 5x5 and
3x3 in the ansi options section of the troop quarters.
[Version 4.10]
There are special new rules for experience in player-vs-player combat. This
ONLY applies to combat with another PLAYER, not to combat with monsters.
Experience is calculated according to the formula:
Exp_gain = Max(0,Loser_Exp-Winner_Exp) + Loser_exp*0.10
See the "Combat Basics" section of the user docs for more specifics.
[Version 4.00]
For REGISTERED systems ONLY: Find the new ACME weapons store. There are
cool new weapons plus a full-time gunsmith on hand to make some unique new
mods to your existing weapons. [Someone at the Death Warrior HQ may be able
to give directions]
Those in need of the Puritron CPU might find interest in knowing that Loki
has it. This quest is somewhat more involved than previous puritron quests,
so be prepared to think a little more. Seek out one of Loki's High Priests
for an item that might be used to summon Loki himself.
Visit Defs Sacre in the Sacre Base Tavern and inquire about the elementals.
You won't regret it.
Form teams! All stores will now give teams with 2 or more members a 5% team
discount.
The Scanner device has been revised. It is now much more useful and reports
bearings correctly.
Take a look at the laptop commands "help" and (if you have it) "cstats".
I raised the default experience table quite a bit for higher level
characters. People beyond level 8 will notice a difference.
Experience for zone 3 + monsters has been tightened up a bit to slow down
advancement of mega-huge players.
Massive changes to fortresses. Many new items available, expanded trading
potential, etc.
(Default Dataset) Users may only train ("go up a level") at Sacre Base.
Other cities (Freedom City, DWHQ, whatever) just don't have the knowledge,
resources, or the desire to train you.
(Default Dataset) The Sacre Base section has been changed around a bit to
spice things up a little.
(Default Dataset) Terra Labs is now out there.... try to find it and it's
supply of Ultrawarpers, Ultrachargers, and Ultracloaks!
[Version 3.80]
If you die and chose to CREATE a new character rather than restarting
from a saved clone, then your saved clone (if you have one) will be lost
forever.
Mines now have a "warning" feature which can be turned on or off.
EMWarp programs have been shown to occasionally "malfunction" when a mine
goes off!
Kill, Inc may have some new items in stock....
Those having trouble crossing the lava river near Xeboc's lair may wish to
seek the location of the Fang Gang City, Blood Lust. There is someone there
who can provide you with a clue about what to do next.
Talking with the Horticulture Center manager again my provide some insight
into one of the new special quests.
[Version 3.70]
Internal bug fixes & cosmetic upgrades.
A few more people in the taverns....
A new ROM you might be able to find.
When the puritron is found, the wasteland will be "cleansed" of impurities.
Players with fortresses should find many new and interesting items available
at the fortress stores!
The character display has been improved to look a bit better. Users who
prefer the older display may set their preference using the ansi options
menu in the troop quarters.
Fortresses will now let their owners enter without a password requirement.
The final encounter with Xeboc may bit a bit more difficult than you
expected.
Towns now carry specific inventories.
During a storm that lasted several weeks, several lakes were formed onto
the wasteland. (well, how else do you want me to explain this???!!!)
Reports of a few new towns were detected.
The people of Freedom City have just gotten a bit more particular about their
visitors.
@@USERQCK
[QuickStart Docs]
With every game, there are those people who will not take the time to
read the game docs before playing... This file is for them!
GENERAL INFO:
Ok. LOD is your basic RPG. You start out in Sacre Base where you may
buy/sell weapons, talk to people, etc.
You start out with a few thousand bucks, a medkit, and some rations. First
thing you should do is get yourself a weapon. Go to the supply station, then
to the SR (short range) weapons store and buy the best you can afford.
Make sure to EQUIP your new weapon either in the T]roop quarters menu or
once you get to the wasteland.
Then go out into the wasteland and kick some butt. Stay close to Sacre
Base and remember it's location. The "easy" monsters are around the base. If
you stray away too far, you'll start running into the hard monsters.
Once you've gotten enough money to buy some better equipment (or you run out
of medkit applications), head back to sacre base and stock up.
COMBAT:
Combat is played in two stages; Long range when you first see your enemy and
short range when you are in close combat.
If you don't have a LR weapon, then you can't do a whole lot at long range.
Just hit hand to hand and fight closely.
You can "surrender" by giving your opponent half your money (providing you
have a decent amount of money). Or you can "run" in which your odds are
based on your agility.
That's all of the essentials. I encourage you to go and read the complete
user manual. There is some very important information in it.
Scott Baker, Author of LOD.
@@LODWALK
The following is a little walkthrough of a new player. If you are still
fuzzy about how to play LOD, then the following should help you out a little
bit.
Please note, for space-saving reasons, I have played out the game in LOD's
worst graphics mode - for most, people, you will either be using the enhanced
ANSI display or the full EGA graphics display (with GTERM).
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Standby, looking for you...
Look's like you are new here. I'll have to ask a few questions and then you
can be on your way.
What would you like to be called around here?
>Waste-M-All
Waste-M-All, Correct (Y/N) ? y
OK. You're all taken care of now.
You might want to stop by the supply station and pick up some equipment.
News
----
Welcome to version 2.10! Many enhancements for this version. Players will
probably want to go to the documentation menu and have a look at the updates
file.
Remember, the farther you stray from Sacre Base, the worse monsters you will
encounter!
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
This copy registered to : Scott Baker
Please thank your sysop for registering his copy
------------------------------------------------------------------------------
13 new messages are present.
Base Operations
---------------
[S] Enter the supply station.
[T] Enter troop quarters.
[D] Documentation Menu.
[P] Commodities trading.
[G] Base Casino.
[M] Mail Room.
[U] Puritron Room.
[C] View your character.
[W] Enter the wasteland.
[Q] Exit Game.
Base Operations Selection ]Supply Station
Supply Station
--------------
[W] Weapons (Short Range).
[L] Weapons (Long Range).
[A] Armor.
[M] Miscellaneous.
[B] Ammunition
[E] Computer Store
[S] Sell something to store
[C] View your character.
[Q] Base Operations.
Supply Station Selection ]SR Weapons Store
Short Range Weapons store
-------------------------
[L] List SR weapons available.
[B] Purchase a weapon.
[S] View data on a weapon.
[C] View your character.
[Q] Supply Station.
SR Weapons Store Selection ]Buy
Purchase which weapon number (Q=Quit,?=List) ? ?
## Name Cost Damage Ammunition Req'd
-- ------------------ -------- ------ ----------------
1 Knife 350 1-3 None
2 Dagger 500 2-3 None
3 Sword 1000 2-5 None
4 RazorLance 2100 3-7 None
5 ElectroBlade 7500 4-8 Power Pack
6 ElectroSword 20000 5-10 Power Pack
7 ElectroLance 40000 6-12 Power Pack
8 Neutron Sabre 250000 14-22 Neutron Pack
Purchase which weapon number (Q=Quit,?=List) ? 3
Purchase a Sword (Y/N) ? y
Ok. It's yours.
Short Range Weapons store
-------------------------
[L] List SR weapons available.
[B] Purchase a weapon.
[S] View data on a weapon.
[C] View your character.
[Q] Supply Station.
SR Weapons Store Selection ]Supply Station
Supply Station
--------------
[W] Weapons (Short Range).
[L] Weapons (Long Range).
[A] Armor.
[M] Miscellaneous.
[B] Ammunition
[E] Computer Store
[S] Sell something to store
[C] View your character.
[Q] Base Operations.
Supply Station Selection ]Miscellaneous Store
Misc. store
-----------
[L] List Items available.
[B] Buy item.
[S] View data on item.
[C] View your character.
[Q] Supply Station.
Misc. Store Selection ]Buy
Purchase which item number (Q=Quit,?=List) ? ?
## Name Cost
-- ------------------ --------
1 Radio 1000
2 LR Scan 32000
3 MedKit/10 750
4 MedKit/15 1500
5 MedKit/25 5000
6 MedKit/50 10000
7 Rations/5 250
8 Rations/10 750
9 Rations/20 5000
10 Scanner 25000
11 Stealth Field 2000
12 Recharger/3 250000
13 Pylon Key 250
Purchase which item number (Q=Quit,?=List) ? 3
Purchase a MedKit/10 (Y/N) ? y
Ok. It's yours.
Misc. store
-----------
[L] List Items available.
[B] Buy item.
[S] View data on item.
[C] View your character.
[Q] Supply Station.
Misc. Store Selection ]Supply Station
Supply Station
--------------
[W] Weapons (Short Range).
[L] Weapons (Long Range).
[A] Armor.
[M] Miscellaneous.
[B] Ammunition
[E] Computer Store
[S] Sell something to store
[C] View your character.
[Q] Base Operations.
Supply Station Selection ]Base Operations
Base Operations
---------------
[S] Enter the supply station.
[T] Enter troop quarters.
[D] Documentation Menu.
[P] Commodities trading.
[G] Base Casino.
[M] Mail Room.
[U] Puritron Room.
[C] View your character.
[W] Enter the wasteland.
[Q] Exit Game.
Base Operations Selection ]Troop Quarters
Troop Quarters
--------------
[O] Combat Mode Selection.
[L] List player rankings.
[X] Toggle expert mode.
[A] Ansi options.
[T] Tavern.
[I] Investment options.
[M] Inventory Maintenance.
[E] Equip Character.
[V] View Log.
[C] View your character.
[Q] Base Operations.
Troop Quarters Selection ]View Character
Character Profile
-----------------
Name..........: WASTE-M-ALL Weapon (Close): None.
Hit Points....: 25/25 Weapon (Range): None.
Strength......: 21 Armor.........: None.
Dexterity.....: 21 Med Lining....: None.
Agility.......: 21 B.A.D. Device.: None.
Experience....: 0 Aux Close Weap: None.
Money.........: 250
Minerals......: 0 cm3
Fuel..........: 0 cm3
Herbs.........: 0 cm3
Special Quests: -------
Inventory.....:
1>MedKit/10 2>Rations/5 3>Sword 4>MedKit/10
5> 6> 7> 8>
9> 10> 11> 12>
13> 14> 15> 16>
°°°±±±²²² Press Any Key ²²²±±±°°°
Troop Quarters
--------------
[O] Combat Mode Selection.
[L] List player rankings.
[X] Toggle expert mode.
[A] Ansi options.
[T] Tavern.
[I] Investment options.
[M] Inventory Maintenance.
[E] Equip Character.
[V] View Log.
[C] View your character.
[Q] Base Operations.
Troop Quarters Selection ]Enter Tavern
Welcome to the Tavern!
You casually enter the Tavern and begin to look around. While you are here,
You notice the following people:
1> Defs Sacre
2> Jeffrey
3> Troy Hadley
4> Mean Max
5> Captain Targon
Who do you want to talk to ? 1
Howdy there. NAME's Defs Sacre. I used to be a warrior, but now I've retired
and serve as bartender here at the base. I know lots about MONSTERS, ARMOR,
WEAPONS, etc. What you want to know about?
]name
NAME's Defs Sacre, like I said.
]monsters
The wasteland is populated by many different creatures. Most of the ones
around the base here are pretty wimpy and some are even unarmed. But once you
go farther out, things get real nasty real quick. What MONSTER do you want to
know about?
]ant
ANT Men? They are a strange lot. Kind of a cross between an ANT and a man.
Nobody knows how it happened - probably more radiation caused mutation.
]weapons
I know lots about WEAPONS. What do you want to know about? SHORT range or
LONG range WEAPONS? I also have used some GRENADES in my time.
]short
There are lots of SHORT range WEAPONS. My favorite is the Slicer-Dicer. They
don't sell them around here - I found it on some kinda robot a ways away from
here. Hell of a battle getting the thing.
]bye
Later, dude. Hope to see you again in one piece.
Welcome to the Tavern!
You casually enter the Tavern and begin to look around. While you are here,
You notice the following people:
1> Defs Sacre
2> Jeffrey
3> Troy Hadley
4> Mean Max
5> Captain Targon
Who do you want to talk to ?
Troop Quarters
--------------
[O] Combat Mode Selection.
[L] List player rankings.
[X] Toggle expert mode.
[A] Ansi options.
[T] Tavern.
[I] Investment options.
[M] Inventory Maintenance.
[E] Equip Character.
[V] View Log.
[C] View your character.
[Q] Base Operations.
Troop Quarters Selection ]Base Operations
Base Operations
---------------
[S] Enter the supply station.
[T] Enter troop quarters.
[D] Documentation Menu.
[P] Commodities trading.
[G] Base Casino.
[M] Mail Room.
[U] Puritron Room.
[C] View your character.
[W] Enter the wasteland.
[Q] Exit Game.
Base Operations Selection ]Wasteland
Enter Wastelands, are you sure (Y/N) ? Yes.
Type "?" for help.
[Terrain] [Status]
ΙΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝ» Location.: 1,7,5 Health...: 25/25
Ί -- -- || Ί Type.....: Town St/Dx/Ag.: 21/21/21
Ί || 11^|| Ί Dist/Zone: 0/1
Ί || -- mm Ί Danger...: 5% Exper....: 0
ΘΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΌ Time Left: 227 Level....: 1
West
[Terrain] [Status]
ΙΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝ» Location.: 1,6,5 Health...: 25/25
Ί mm -- -- Ί Type.....: Road St/Dx/Ag.: 21/21/21
Ί -- || 11^Ί Dist/Zone: 1/1
Ί -- || -- Ί Danger...: 5% Exper....: 0
ΘΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΌ Time Left: 227 Level....: 1
South
[Terrain] [Status]
ΙΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝ» Location.: 1,6,6 Health...: 25/25
Ί -- || 11^Ί Type.....: Road St/Dx/Ag.: 21/21/21
Ί -- || -- Ί Dist/Zone: 1/1
Ί || || -- Ί Danger...: 5% Exper....: 0
ΘΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΌ Time Left: 227 Level....: 1
Equip
Equip What:
C-Close Weapon A - Armor B - B.A.D. Device
R-Ranged Weapon L - Medical Lining X - Aux Close Weapon
Selection ? Close Weapon
Select which item number (?=List,0=None) ? ?
1>MedKit/10 2>Rations/5 3>Sword 4>MedKit/10
5> 6> 7> 8>
9> 10> 11> 12>
13> 14> 15> 16>
Select which item number (?=List,0=None) ? 3
Equip What:
C-Close Weapon A - Armor B - B.A.D. Device
R-Ranged Weapon L - Medical Lining X - Aux Close Weapon
Selection ? Quit
[Terrain] [Status]
ΙΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝ» Location.: 1,6,6 Health...: 25/25
Ί -- || 11^Ί Type.....: Road St/Dx/Ag.: 21/21/21
Ί -- || -- Ί Dist/Zone: 1/1
Ί || || -- Ί Danger...: 5% Exper....: 0
ΘΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΌ Time Left: 227 Level....: 1
South
[Terrain] [Status]
ΙΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝ» Location.: 1,6,7 Health...: 25/25
Ί -- || -- Ί Type.....: Road St/Dx/Ag.: 21/21/21
Ί || || -- Ί Dist/Zone: 2/1
Ί mm -- -- Ί Danger...: 5% Exper....: 0
ΘΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΌ Time Left: 226 Level....: 1
West
[Terrain] [Status]
ΙΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝ» Location.: 1,5,7 Health...: 25/25
Ί mm -- || Ί Type.....: Road St/Dx/Ag.: 21/21/21
Ί || || || Ί Dist/Zone: 3/1
Ί || mm -- Ί Danger...: 5% Exper....: 0
ΘΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΌ Time Left: 226 Level....: 1
West
[Terrain] [Status]
ΙΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝ» Location.: 1,4,7 Health...: 25/25
Ί MM mm -- Ί Type.....: Road St/Dx/Ag.: 21/21/21
Ί MM || || Ί Dist/Zone: 4/1
Ί MM || mm Ί Danger...: 5% Exper....: 0
ΘΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΌ Time Left: 226 Level....: 1
South
[Terrain] [Status]
ΙΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝ» Location.: 1,4,8 Health...: 25/25
Ί MM || || Ί Type.....: Road St/Dx/Ag.: 21/21/21
Ί MM || mm Ί Dist/Zone: 4/1
Ί MM CC MM Ί Danger...: 5% Exper....: 0
ΘΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΌ Time Left: 226 Level....: 1
South
[Terrain] [Status]
ΙΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝ» Location.: 1,4,9 Health...: 25/25
Ί MM || mm Ί Type.....: Clone Cntr St/Dx/Ag.: 21/21/21
Ί MM CC MM Ί Dist/Zone: 5/1
Ί MM MM MM Ί Danger...: 5% Exper....: 0
ΘΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΌ Time Left: 226 Level....: 1
Enter Town
Clone Center
------------
[V] View current clone.
[D] Delete current clone.
[S] Swap with clone.
[M] Make a new clone.
[C] View your character.
[Q] Quit to wastelands.
Clone Center Selection ]View current clone
You do not have a clone.
°°°±±±²²² Press Any Key ²²²±±±°°°
Clone Center
------------
[V] View current clone.
[D] Delete current clone.
[S] Swap with clone.
[M] Make a new clone.
[C] View your character.
[Q] Quit to wastelands.
Clone Center Selection ]Make new clone
Cloning yourself will cost $4400. Proceed [Y/N] ? No
Clone Center
------------
[V] View current clone.
[D] Delete current clone.
[S] Swap with clone.
[M] Make a new clone.
[C] View your character.
[Q] Quit to wastelands.
Clone Center Selection ]Quit to wastelands
[Terrain] [Status]
ΙΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝ» Location.: 1,4,9 Health...: 25/25
Ί MM || mm Ί Type.....: Clone Cntr St/Dx/Ag.: 21/21/21
Ί MM CC MM Ί Dist/Zone: 5/1
Ί MM MM MM Ί Danger...: 5% Exper....: 0
ΘΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΌ Time Left: 226 Level....: 1
North
[Terrain] [Status]
ΙΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝ» Location.: 1,4,8 Health...: 25/25
Ί MM || || Ί Type.....: Road St/Dx/Ag.: 21/21/21
Ί MM || mm Ί Dist/Zone: 4/1
Ί MM CC MM Ί Danger...: 5% Exper....: 0
ΘΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΌ Time Left: 226 Level....: 1
North
[Terrain] [Status]
ΙΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝ» Location.: 1,4,7 Health...: 25/25
Ί MM mm -- Ί Type.....: Road St/Dx/Ag.: 21/21/21
Ί MM || || Ί Dist/Zone: 4/1
Ί MM || mm Ί Danger...: 5% Exper....: 0
ΘΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΌ Time Left: 226 Level....: 1
East
[Terrain] [Status]
ΙΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝ» Location.: 1,5,7 Health...: 25/25
Ί mm -- || Ί Type.....: Road St/Dx/Ag.: 21/21/21
Ί || || || Ί Dist/Zone: 3/1
Ί || mm -- Ί Danger...: 5% Exper....: 0
ΘΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΌ Time Left: 226 Level....: 1
East
[Terrain] [Status]
ΙΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝ» Location.: 1,6,7 Health...: 25/25
Ί -- || -- Ί Type.....: Road St/Dx/Ag.: 21/21/21
Ί || || -- Ί Dist/Zone: 2/1
Ί mm -- -- Ί Danger...: 5% Exper....: 0
ΘΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΌ Time Left: 226 Level....: 1
North
[Terrain] [Status]
ΙΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝ» Location.: 1,6,6 Health...: 25/25
Ί -- || 11^Ί Type.....: Road St/Dx/Ag.: 21/21/21
Ί -- || -- Ί Dist/Zone: 1/1
Ί || || -- Ί Danger...: 5% Exper....: 0
ΘΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΌ Time Left: 226 Level....: 1
North
[Terrain] [Status]
ΙΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝ» Location.: 1,6,5 Health...: 25/25
Ί mm -- -- Ί Type.....: Road St/Dx/Ag.: 21/21/21
Ί -- || 11^Ί Dist/Zone: 1/1
Ί -- || -- Ί Danger...: 5% Exper....: 0
ΘΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΌ Time Left: 226 Level....: 1
A voice yells out from the brush "Like gimme like all of your money or
like I'll have to like kill you! Like do what I say, like now, ok?". It is
a mutant valley-girl. Once dreaded only as department store temporaries
during holiday seasons, the radiation has turned them into a very hideous
foe.
Press any key.
Long Range Encounter
--------------------
[L] Fight long range combat
[G] Chuck a rad-grenade at enemy
[H] Fight close range combat (hand-to-hand)
[R] Run away
[S] Surrender
[T] Attempt to strike up a conversation.
[C] Check status
[V] View Opponent
Long Range Encounter ]Talk to Opponent
Like what do you like want? I'm gonna like KILL you like right now. Like
understand?
]kill
Like gimme a K! Like gimme an I! Like gimme an L! Like gimme another L!
I'm gonna like KILL you!
]bye
Ok. I gotta like KILL you now.
°°°±±±²²² Press Any Key ²²²±±±°°°
Long Range Encounter
--------------------
[L] Fight long range combat
[G] Chuck a rad-grenade at enemy
[H] Fight close range combat (hand-to-hand)
[R] Run away
[S] Surrender
[T] Attempt to strike up a conversation.
[C] Check status
[V] View Opponent
Long Range Encounter ]Hand-To-Hand
You prepare for hand-to-hand combat!
[Status - Waste-M-All: 25/25; Valley Girl: 20/20]
A]ttack T]ill-death R]un S]urrender V]iew C]har W]arp E]xchange >->Attack
Your Sword bounces off of Valley Girl's armor.
The Valley Girl throws a mighty punch to your face, throwing you to
the ground.
[Status - Waste-M-All: 24/25; Valley Girl: 20/20]
A]ttack T]ill-death R]un S]urrender V]iew C]har W]arp E]xchange >->Attack
With a savage war-cry, you slam your Sword into your enemy's chest,
crushing his ribs!
Catching you in surprise, the Valley Girl throws you to the ground
with a low-kick.
[Status - Waste-M-All: 23/25; Valley Girl: 16/20]
A]ttack T]ill-death R]un S]urrender V]iew C]har W]arp E]xchange >->Attack
Your Sword streaks past Valley Girl in a vain miss.
The Valley Girl's takes a flying leap at you and lands face-first on
the ground.
[Status - Waste-M-All: 23/25; Valley Girl: 16/20]
A]ttack T]ill-death R]un S]urrender V]iew C]har W]arp E]xchange >->Attack
With the might of a warrior, you hack off some of Valley Girl's flesh
as a souvenir!
You successfully block the Valley Girl's oncoming attack and send him
flying to the ground in defeat.
[Status - Waste-M-All: 23/25; Valley Girl: 14/20]
A]ttack T]ill-death R]un S]urrender V]iew C]har W]arp E]xchange >->Attack
Your Sword fails to penetrate Valley Girl's armor.
You successfully block the Valley Girl's oncoming attack and send him
flying to the ground in defeat.
[Status - Waste-M-All: 23/25; Valley Girl: 14/20]
A]ttack T]ill-death R]un S]urrender V]iew C]har W]arp E]xchange >->Attack
You viciously tear into Valley Girl with your Sword!
The Valley Girl lunges at you, knocking you off your feet.
[Status - Waste-M-All: 22/25; Valley Girl: 9/20]
A]ttack T]ill-death R]un S]urrender V]iew C]har W]arp E]xchange >->Attack
Anticipating your attack, Valley Girl proves a bit faster than the
you, and executes a skillful dodge.
Catching you in surprise, the Valley Girl throws you to the ground
with a low-kick.
[Status - Waste-M-All: 21/25; Valley Girl: 9/20]
A]ttack T]ill-death R]un S]urrender V]iew C]har W]arp E]xchange >->Attack
With a savage war-cry, you slam your Sword into your enemy's chest,
crushing his ribs!
Catching you in surprise, the Valley Girl throws you to the ground
with a low-kick.
[Status - Waste-M-All: 19/25; Valley Girl: 7/20]
A]ttack T]ill-death R]un S]urrender V]iew C]har W]arp E]xchange >->Attack
Your Sword slices through Valley Girl's skin as he falls backward in
defeat!
The Valley Girl lunges at you, knocking you off your feet.
[Status - Waste-M-All: 17/25; Valley Girl: 5/20]
A]ttack T]ill-death R]un S]urrender V]iew C]har W]arp E]xchange >->Attack
You plunge your Sword deep into Valley Girl's chest, sending it to
the ground howling in pain!
Catching you in surprise, the Valley Girl throws you to the ground
with a low-kick.
[Status - Waste-M-All: 16/25; Valley Girl: 2/20]
A]ttack T]ill-death R]un S]urrender V]iew C]har W]arp E]xchange >->Attack
The Valley Girl successfully blocks your oncoming attack and sends
you flying to the ground in defeat.
Catching you in surprise, the Valley Girl throws you to the ground
with a low-kick.
[Status - Waste-M-All: 14/25; Valley Girl: 2/20]
A]ttack T]ill-death R]un S]urrender V]iew C]har W]arp E]xchange >->Attack
You catch Valley Girl off-guard and slice it with your Sword!
[Status - Waste-M-All: 14/25; Valley Girl: 0/20]
As the mutant valley girl falls toward the ground, she utters "This like
really sucks dude." She will trouble you no more now.
You gain 252 experience and 105 gold from the encounter.
Wastelands Help
---------------
North...: N or 8 Pick Up Item: P Enter Town....: G
South...: S or 2 Drop Item...: D Camp out here.: A
East....: E or 6 Check Status: C Construct fort: F
West....: W or 6 Equip.......: Q Enter Fort....: I
Look....: L or 5 Use Item....: U Inv Maint.....: M
Kill Obj: K Quick Heal..: Y B.A.D. Spell..: B
°°°±±±²²² Press Any Key ²²²±±±°°°
Nearby Items
------------
356>Cheerldr Suit/1 357>Ghetto Blaster
[Terrain] [Status]
ΙΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝ» Location.: 1,6,5 Health...: 14/25
Ί mm -- -- Ί Type.....: Road St/Dx/Ag.: 21/21/21
Ί -- ||+11^Ί Dist/Zone: 1/1
Ί -- || -- Ί Danger...: 5% Exper....: 252
ΘΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΌ Time Left: 225 Level....: 1
Quick Heal
Quick heal used 2 medkit doses. 18 remain.
Nearby Items
------------
356>Cheerldr Suit/1 357>Ghetto Blaster
[Terrain] [Status]
ΙΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝ» Location.: 1,6,5 Health...: 25/25
Ί mm -- -- Ί Type.....: Road St/Dx/Ag.: 21/21/21
Ί -- ||+11^Ί Dist/Zone: 1/1
Ί -- || -- Ί Danger...: 5% Exper....: 252
ΘΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΌ Time Left: 225 Level....: 1
Pick Up
Pick up which object from ground (?=List) ? 356
Nearby Items
------------
357>Ghetto Blaster
[Terrain] [Status]
ΙΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝ» Location.: 1,6,5 Health...: 25/25
Ί mm -- -- Ί Type.....: Road St/Dx/Ag.: 21/21/21
Ί -- ||+11^Ί Dist/Zone: 1/1
Ί -- || -- Ί Danger...: 5% Exper....: 252
ΘΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΌ Time Left: 225 Level....: 1
Pick Up
Pick up which object from ground (?=List) ? 357
[Terrain] [Status]
ΙΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝ» Location.: 1,6,5 Health...: 25/25
Ί mm -- -- Ί Type.....: Road St/Dx/Ag.: 21/21/21
Ί -- || 11^Ί Dist/Zone: 1/1
Ί -- || -- Ί Danger...: 5% Exper....: 252
ΘΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΌ Time Left: 225 Level....: 1
Use Object
Use which object from inventory (?=List) ? ?
1>MedKit/8 2>Rations/5 3>Cheerldr Suit/1 4>MedKit/10
5>Ghetto Blaster 6> 7> 8>
9> 10> 11> 12>
13> 14> 15> 16>
Use which object from inventory (?=List) ? 5
"Today, several villagers were killed as yet another earthquake rocked the
island of California ..."
°°°±±±²²² Press Any Key ²²²±±±°°°
[Terrain] [Status]
ΙΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝ» Location.: 1,6,5 Health...: 25/25
Ί mm -- -- Ί Type.....: Road St/Dx/Ag.: 21/21/21
Ί -- || 11^Ί Dist/Zone: 1/1
Ί -- || -- Ί Danger...: 5% Exper....: 252
ΘΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΌ Time Left: 225 Level....: 1
East
[Terrain] [Status]
ΙΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝ» Location.: 1,7,5 Health...: 25/25
Ί -- -- || Ί Type.....: Town St/Dx/Ag.: 21/21/21
Ί || 11^|| Ί Dist/Zone: 0/1
Ί || -- mm Ί Danger...: 5% Exper....: 252
ΘΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΌ Time Left: 225 Level....: 1
East
[Terrain] [Status]
ΙΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝ» Location.: 1,8,5 Health...: 25/25
Ί -- || || Ί Type.....: Road St/Dx/Ag.: 21/21/21
Ί 11^|| mm^Ί Dist/Zone: 1/1
Ί -- mm mm Ί Danger...: 5% Exper....: 252
ΘΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΌ Time Left: 225 Level....: 1
North
[Terrain] [Status]
ΙΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝ» Location.: 1,8,4 Health...: 25/25
Ί -- mm mm Ί Type.....: Road St/Dx/Ag.: 21/21/21
Ί -- || || Ί Dist/Zone: 1/1
Ί 11^|| mm^Ί Danger...: 5% Exper....: 252
ΘΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΌ Time Left: 225 Level....: 1
East
[Terrain] [Status]
ΙΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝ» Location.: 1,9,4 Health...: 25/25
Ί mm mm mm Ί Type.....: Road St/Dx/Ag.: 21/21/21
Ί || || || Ί Dist/Zone: 2/1
Ί || mm^mm^Ί Danger...: 5% Exper....: 252
ΘΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΌ Time Left: 225 Level....: 1
East
[Terrain] [Status]
ΙΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝ» Location.: 1,10,4 Health...: 25/25
Ί mm mm mm+Ί Type.....: Road St/Dx/Ag.: 21/21/21
Ί || || || Ί Dist/Zone: 3/1
Ί mm^mm^mm^Ί Danger...: 5% Exper....: 252
ΘΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΌ Time Left: 225 Level....: 1
East
[Terrain] [Status]
ΙΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝ» Location.: 1,11,4 Health...: 25/25
Ί mm mm+mm Ί Type.....: Road St/Dx/Ag.: 21/21/21
Ί || || || Ί Dist/Zone: 4/1
Ί mm^mm^|| Ί Danger...: 5% Exper....: 252
ΘΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΌ Time Left: 225 Level....: 1
North
Nearby Items
------------
353>MedKit/10 354>Rations/5
[Terrain] [Status]
ΙΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝ» Location.: 1,11,3 Health...: 25/25
Ί MM MM MM Ί Type.....: Mountains St/Dx/Ag.: 21/21/21
Ί mm mm+mm Ί Dist/Zone: 4/1
Ί || || || Ί Danger...: 15% Exper....: 252
ΘΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΌ Time Left: 225 Level....: 1
Pick Up
Pick up which object from ground (?=List) ? 353
Nearby Items
------------
354>Rations/5
[Terrain] [Status]
ΙΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝ» Location.: 1,11,3 Health...: 25/25
Ί MM MM MM Ί Type.....: Mountains St/Dx/Ag.: 21/21/21
Ί mm mm+mm Ί Dist/Zone: 4/1
Ί || || || Ί Danger...: 15% Exper....: 252
ΘΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΌ Time Left: 225 Level....: 1
Pick Up
Pick up which object from ground (?=List) ? 354
[Terrain] [Status]
ΙΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝ» Location.: 1,11,3 Health...: 25/25
Ί MM MM MM Ί Type.....: Mountains St/Dx/Ag.: 21/21/21
Ί mm mm mm Ί Dist/Zone: 4/1
Ί || || || Ί Danger...: 15% Exper....: 252
ΘΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΌ Time Left: 225 Level....: 1
South
[Terrain] [Status]
ΙΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝ» Location.: 1,11,4 Health...: 25/25
Ί mm mm mm Ί Type.....: Road St/Dx/Ag.: 21/21/21
Ί || || || Ί Dist/Zone: 4/1
Ί mm^mm^|| Ί Danger...: 5% Exper....: 252
ΘΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΌ Time Left: 225 Level....: 1
East
[Terrain] [Status]
ΙΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝ» Location.: 1,12,4 Health...: 25/25
Ί mm mm MM Ί Type.....: Road St/Dx/Ag.: 21/21/21
Ί || || MM Ί Dist/Zone: 5/1
Ί mm^|| mm Ί Danger...: 5% Exper....: 252
ΘΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΌ Time Left: 225 Level....: 1
South
[Terrain] [Status]
ΙΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝ» Location.: 1,12,5 Health...: 25/25
Ί || || MM Ί Type.....: Road St/Dx/Ag.: 21/21/21
Ί mm^|| mm Ί Dist/Zone: 5/1
Ί mm || mm Ί Danger...: 5% Exper....: 252
ΘΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΌ Time Left: 225 Level....: 1
South
[Terrain] [Status]
ΙΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝ» Location.: 1,12,6 Health...: 25/25
Ί mm^|| mm Ί Type.....: Road St/Dx/Ag.: 21/21/21
Ί mm || mm Ί Dist/Zone: 5/1
Ί mm || .. Ί Danger...: 5% Exper....: 252
ΘΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΌ Time Left: 225 Level....: 1
South
[Terrain] [Status]
ΙΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝ» Location.: 1,12,7 Health...: 25/25
Ί mm || mm Ί Type.....: Road St/Dx/Ag.: 21/21/21
Ί mm || .. Ί Dist/Zone: 5/1
Ί mm || || Ί Danger...: 5% Exper....: 252
ΘΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΌ Time Left: 225 Level....: 1
South
[Terrain] [Status]
ΙΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝ» Location.: 1,12,8 Health...: 25/25
Ί mm || .. Ί Type.....: Road St/Dx/Ag.: 21/21/21
Ί mm || || Ί Dist/Zone: 6/1
Ί .. .. .. Ί Danger...: 5% Exper....: 252
ΘΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΌ Time Left: 225 Level....: 1
East
[Terrain] [Status]
ΙΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝ» Location.: 1,13,8 Health...: 25/25
Ί || .. .. Ί Type.....: Road St/Dx/Ag.: 21/21/21
Ί || || || Ί Dist/Zone: 7/1
Ί .. .. .. Ί Danger...: 5% Exper....: 252
ΘΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΌ Time Left: 224 Level....: 1
East
[Terrain] [Status]
ΙΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝ» Location.: 1,14,8 Health...: 25/25
Ί .. .. .. Ί Type.....: Road St/Dx/Ag.: 21/21/21
Ί || || || Ί Dist/Zone: 8/1
Ί .. .. .. Ί Danger...: 5% Exper....: 252
ΘΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΌ Time Left: 224 Level....: 1
East
[Terrain] [Status]
ΙΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝ» Location.: 1,15,8 Health...: 25/25
Ί .. .. .. Ί Type.....: Road St/Dx/Ag.: 21/21/21
Ί || || ||+Ί Dist/Zone: 9/1
Ί .. .. .. Ί Danger...: 5% Exper....: 252
ΘΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΌ Time Left: 224 Level....: 1
East
Nearby Items
------------
65>Apron/8 192>Cloth/2
[Terrain] [Status]
ΙΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝ» Location.: 1,16,8 Health...: 25/25
Ί .. .. .. Ί Type.....: Road St/Dx/Ag.: 21/21/21
Ί || ||+|| Ί Dist/Zone: 9/1
Ί .. .. || Ί Danger...: 5% Exper....: 252
ΘΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΌ Time Left: 224 Level....: 1
East
[Terrain] [Status]
ΙΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝ» Location.: 1,17,8 Health...: 25/25
Ί .. .. .. Ί Type.....: Road St/Dx/Ag.: 21/21/21
Ί ||+|| .. Ί Dist/Zone: 10/1
Ί .. || .. Ί Danger...: 5% Exper....: 252
ΘΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΝΌ Time Left: 224 Level....: 1
Camp Out
Camp here, are you sure (Y/N) ? Yes
@@FININFO
Financial Options
-----------------
In the investment options menu of the troop quarters, there are a few
different financial options that you can perform. These are:
1] Withdrawing/Depositing money in your "standard account"
The standard account is a safe investment which will earn you 7% of your
money per night. Your money is always safe there - it can't be lost, stolen,
etc.
2] Withdraw/Deposit money in your "game account"
The game account is a special account which will earn you 14% per
day. However, this money is not without risk. Other players can "challenge"
you to games. They will challenge you for up to 50% of what is in your
account. If they win, you will gain 50%, if you lose, then you will lose
50% for them. For example:
a> Defs Sacre has $500 in his account.
b> Atlas Eyes challenges for $250. If Atlas Eyes wins the game then he
will get $250 of Defs Sacre's money. Otherwise, Atlas Eyes will lose
$250 of his money to Defs Sacre.
c> Atlas Eyes loses. And Defs Sacre ends up with $750.
d> maint runs and Defs Sacre earns 14% interest on his $750, bringing his
total up to $1000. Not bad!
3] Request a loan
You may request a lone from the bank. They will usually loan you up to
5% of your worth. Each day the amount you are required to pay back will
rise by 18%. They will get increasingly upset if you do not pay this
off very quickly.
4] Pay off loan
You can pay off as much of your loan as you wish at any time. Paying off
your loan is wise as any unpaid balance accumulates 20% interest per
night.
5] Financial Statement
Just summarizes how much money you have (or don't have?)
6] Financial Info
A brief summary of the available financial options.
7] Deposit/Withdraw rent account
The rent account is a special account that is managed by Hotels-R-Us.
Here's how it works: The guys at Hotels-R-Us are very nice - they will
let you stay at any city for FREE until you reach level eight. But, once
you reach level 8, you will have to start paying rent.
Each night, an additional rent charge will be added to your account.
When you get on at your next log on, you should probably pay this charge
off. If you have not paid by the next time, then Hotels-R-Us will deny
you access to the city! (although there are some rather unpleasant
ways to get back into the city).
Unlike the other two accounts, the rent account can have either a
surplus or a deficit in it. A deficit (negative money) means that you
owe Hotels-R-Us and they will get upset if they aren't paid.
A surplus in the account means that you have extra money there that
might pay for a few days rent.
So what does all this mean? It means, once you get to level 8, buy
a base and live there instead! (If you stay in a base or camp out in the
wasteland, you are not charged rent)
@@Q&A
Questions and Answers:
Q. When I view a monster, it says his weapons do a certain amount of damage,
but when I fight him, he hits for many more points!
A. The damage listed for his weapons is the BASE damage level. The actual
damage is dependent on his strength. For a weak monster, the damage
done will be less that the weapons rating. For a strong monster, the
damage will be greater.
Q. How do I get to the lower levels?
A. You don't! Starting with version 2.00 of LOD and up, there is no lower
map. The top level was increased in size to provide for a more
realistic game environment.
Q. What are these "special quests" ?
A. They are exactly as the name implies - a few little side adventures
thrown in to add flavor to the game. Sometimes talking to the residents
of a town may get you some insight into a quest, otherwise, locating
and using a special object may help. Remember, always try out all of
the gadgets you find in the wasteland!
Q. I don't like this "xxx's weapon disintegrates as it falls to the ground"
stuff. How can I get rid of it?
A. If you're the sysop (or game operator), then you can go into monster.def,
find the character "DEFAULT_1", go down to the line which says "DESINT 35"
and change it to a smaller value. The smaller the value, the less the
chance that weapons, armor, etc will be disintegrated.
# LOD Newsletter file
#
# This file will be updated to contain all LOD newsletter issues. Please
# Don't delete it - it is used by LOD itself when users request a newsletter
# to be displayed.
NUMITEMS 5
LODNEWS1 Volume 1, Issue 1: Premier Issue!
LODNEWS2 Volume 1, Issue 2: LODNews Continues!
LODNEWS3 Volume 1, Issue 3: Yet Another LodNews!
LODNEWS4 Volume 2, Issue 1: March, 1993
LODNEWS5 Volume 3, Issue 1: May, 1994
LODNEWS6 Volume 4, Issue 1: May, 1995
@@LODNEWS1
Land Of Devastation News
Volume 1 Number 1
Editor: Scott M. Baker
Contents
1) Welcome To the Premier Issue!.......Scott Baker
2) Planned LOD Updates.................Scott Baker
3) LOD's Graphics: How it works........Scott Baker
4) User Submissions....................Scott Baker
5) LOD Thoughts from Nick..............Nick (David Doyle)
6) Xenon's Jounral Entry...............Xenon (Jonas Saunders)
Welcome to the Premier Issue!
By Scott M. Baker
Welcome to the premier issue of the LOD newsletter. A few
users have requested that we start up a newsletter, so here it
is! (Now, if those same users would just submit something!)
First of all, let me talk a little bit about my current
work on LOD. As I write this issue, I am taking a break from
the deisgn of LOD 3.00. Origanally, version 3.00 was going to
be a simple bug fix release, but the demand for new features
is so strong, I have decided to do what I can while I have the
time.
For those of you who have complained that LOD is not
finished, version 3.00 is getting very close to what I am
going to consider "completion". The Puritron routines are
finally installed and fully functional. This means that the
users can finally win and restart the game. Also, if we we can
figure out the best way to do it, I'm going to try to throw in
some player-vs-player games and some player-vs-player combat.
I've also been working on a set of new weapons for the
power hungry players out there. Already added are a few exotic
items such as the Pulse Bazooka and Xenon's Surprise. To power
these weapons, we have a nice Vortex Cell which can hold an
immense amount of power.
Medical lining is also having some addition - there are
two new classes available which are quite handy out in the
wasteland. The price for these items? Well, let's just say
you'd better have played for a while before trying to buy one!
For those of you who have completed all of the special
quests, I'm going to throw in a few more that you can work on.
Perhaps the first person to complete them in each game
will get a special award.
------------
Planned LOD Updates
Scott M. Baker
Currently, here is a list of what updates I plan on making
in the future. These aren't listed in any particular order,
just whats on my mind:
1) Finish player-vs-player combat! We all know you players
out there want to kill each other, so let me see if I can get
an option for it.
2) Multi-level support. Not similar to the previous
multilevel support where the landscape was duplicated, but
actual inner maps for buildings and such. (i.e. You enter
Xeboc's lair and there is a sub-map for it)
3) More monsters. We need the 4th, 5th, and 6th levels
populated. I threw in a few, but I could really use some
suggestions for a few more. (hint, hint)
4) Player-vs-Player games. One of the major complaints
about LOD is that there isn't enough player-vs-player
interaction. I'd like to throw in some games to use that game
account and let the users interact a bit.
That's whats on my mind for the next versions. If anyone
out there has any suggestions of other important things to be
added, or any ideas on the above, then let me know!
------------
LOD's graphics: How it works.
By Scott M. Baker
The most often design question I get asked is about LOD's
(and GTERM's) graphics - how are they implemented? Well,
there's quite a long story to the actual process. Let's begin
by talking about where they came from.
Shane Chambers has drawn up the bulk of the images. From
my understanding of the process, they start out on a clean
white piece of paper. Shane sketches them out freehand with a
pencil. Then he scans them in with a 2-color (monochrome)
scanner. The pictures are then converted and edited with Dr.
Halo and Dr. Halo DPE, colorized, and exported in a .GIF which
Shane sends to me.
We chose the GIF format because it was something that is
somewhat popular and something that both Shane can write to
and I can read them. When the image arrives to me, I load it
into a little utility that I wrote which converts it to a
turbo pascal format.
For the final step in organizing the images, they are
packed together into the various RESOURCE.xxx files. Some
people are under the impression that these files are in some
kind of proprietary format. They really aren't in any actual
format at all. They are simply all of the images stuck end to
end one right after the other. Small images (such as inventory
and map items) get thrown in one file and large images (such
as monster and town pictures) get thrown in another.
The way I read these pictures in is really a complex
matter involving memory buffering and caching, EMS support,
etc, but the concept is really pretty simple - you "blockread"
them in to memory, and then display them onto the screen. It's
as simple as that. If you want to get fancy, you can RLE or
LZW compress your images to save space; You can buffer the
images in memory to increase speed, etc.
The final thing that remains to be discussed is how does
LOD tell GTERM what pictures to display? This is accomplished
by a miniature error-correcting protocol that is operating
mostly in the background. LOD sends "packets" of data to
GTERM. GTERM interprets the contents of these packets and acts
accordingly. If you haven't already, then reading a good
discussion of XMODEM will help you understand the operation of
error correcting protocols. While xmodem is not very highly
regarded for it's efficiency or security, it's basic
foundation is the key to understanding how a door may
communicate with remote terminal.
Well, there you have it, a very basic discussion of how
the graphics routines in LOD and GTERM work.
-------------
User Submissions
by Scott M. Baker
This newsletter is open to submissions by anyone - if you
have something to submit, then just upload it to my bbs. If I
decide it belongs in the newsletter, then it'll show up in the
next issue.
Here's a few things that I would like to see submitted if
some people out there have the time:
- Newuser tips, playing strategies, etc.
At times, LOD can be a very comlex game. Sometimes,
these complexities are a bit hard for new users to
pick up. So, those of you experienced LOD maniacs
out there, please send in some tips, your winning
strategies, etc.
- Historical Text
If you like to do SF writing, then a few "background"
stories about the nuclear history in LOD would be
nice. In my own discussion of LOD's history have left
some details out. If for example, you would like to
document the fall of society to nuclear holocaust in
2005, then go for it! After all, LOD really is just an
interactive multiplayer story!
- Monster Designs
Although they probably won't appear in the newsletter,
I am always looking for more monsters. Particularly
ones to populate the outer zones. If you like, write
me up some and I'll see if I can throw them in. Note:
Please try to fit them into the existing LOD framework
and plot. Monsters that have unknown weapons and
origins sometimes just don't fit.
- Combat description text
Are combat descriptions sometimes seem a bit limited.
Sometimes I myself can get real tired of hearing "You
slash into the Rad Hound with your sword." If you have
a talent for writing up good descriptions, I wouldn't
mind seeing some of these either.
The newsletter will be published as often as enough
material accumulates to make it a decent size.
-------------
LOD thoughts from Nick...
I never thought I'd become an adventurer: I'm really not the
type for blasting mutant creatures, executioner robots and
such with gizmos I can't even pronounce, much less understand.
But then again, I never thought the civilized world would come
to an end either. You have to do you best with what you have
to work with though, and so, with the world the way it is, I
guess I'm real fortunate to have had the sense to enlist. And
you know what? I found out I'm not half bad at it either!
Now most people don't do things quite the way I do -- and
nobody can tell you what you ought to -- a body's gotta decide
such things himself and live with it. But I noticed some
things I thought might make it easier on those that take up
where I leave off. Maybe what I tell might help. Then again,
maybe not.
First off: Money. Figure out what's worth collecting
depending on your net worth and level. At first, a real quick
trip out to pick up anything you can find will get you that
extra 100 to buy a razorlance. Also, suppose you hop out of
base in your shorts and not so much as a butter knife on you
(don't waste your money on equipment [more on this in a
minute]) I wouldn't be afraid to run away from a scavenger or
insane soldier -- they might shoot at you, but you can just
heal it. Later on in the game, don't waste your inventory
carrying cheap stuff -- some of the armor is worth a lot.
Also, keep some cash in the bank ... compound interest is the
8th wonder of the new world!
Second: Use the technology. Some say we're better off back
in the caves wearing skins and fighting with rocks 'cause
"technology" got us into this mess. But its what people did
with it that caused the devastation and besides, when a death
warrior comes after you, energy armor and a neutron rifle sure
keeps you alive better. Also, its our only hope ... we have
to get the puritron on-line or we're stuck!
Oh yeah, I was talking about using the devices: The stealth
buckles are great! You can use several at a time to cover
some dangerous ground, and scavenge some good equipment up.
Also the computer store has some handy stuff -- the DIET
program sure saves you hassle and food bill. (Nobody enjoys
eating now anyway)
Third: Pay attention to where you are. If you find yourself
in a new area, remember what you did to get there and what it
looks like. If you can't close your eyes and still see the
scenery, you're not concentrating on what's around you enough.
You should have a sense for how far away from things you are,
too: the dist/zone monitor helps you develop a feel for this.
Fourth: Cooperate. Use the mail, talk to the others out
there. And remember, we're all trying to save the world --
there's enough opponents out in the wasteland without us
killing each other off.
----------
Xenon Journal Entry - Date ????
Today as I set out from Sacre Base, in search for the
missing puritron devices, I had an uneasy feeling. This
wasn't going to be a easy journey.
Xenon
Ok, guys, so you wanna be an adventurer? Here's some hints
from the greatest adventurer ever, Xenon (aka Jonas Saunders).
Getting killed by monsters too quickly? Buy a stealth device.
Activate the stealth's Quiet Mode. Go as far as you can, in,
say zone 3 or 4. Find some better weapons. (There's bound to
be some laying around if the game has been running for a
while) If you happen to encounter a monster, RUN. If you get
hit, use your medkit. Don't attack until you have better
weapon and armor. When you do find some, go back to Zone 1 and
start attacking monsters. ALWAYS surrender if your HP go
below 10. Or take risks.
Starving to death? Buy the laptop and the DIET program. Get
the GSRZ/50 rations. You'll last about 1 month. (Real-time,
not game-wise)
Dying and starting over? Buy the laptop and find the EM-Warp
ROM. Find some Warper/5's. You'll save some precious time and
won't have to start over so much.
Collecting items the monster drop off the wasteland and
selling them is the BEST way to earn money. As soon as you
have about 2 million credits (About 20 minutes worth of
work/play time) BUY the Neutron Sabre and Neutron Rifle.
Those weapons will help. Getting a Pylon key will really help
you later on the game.
Find the EEEE Center and the Clone Center AS EARLY IN THE GAME
AS YOU can. The EEEE Center has a nifty weapon, called
Xenon's Surprise. This weapon will blow the monsters away with
ease. Get one of the Vortex Cells also. You can add
unlimited amounts of power to it and don't have to worry about
going back to one of the base to buy more power. Get Stizli
Medline and you'll regain 1 HP each 2 move. This may help out
in tight situations where you're out of Medkits.
Build a Fortress in each Zone. (Zone 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6) Give
all fortresses Teleporters. This will help you teleport back
to Sacre Base to resupply. Then you can go back to Zone 1
base and teleport to whatever zone you were in last. This
strategy has helped me greatly.
Use the Pylons to find TASDU - the machine may have some
useful information. Use the Pylons to find Xeboc too. He has
one Puritron Device. Use the Pylons to find the Nuclear Silo.
There is a Puritron Device there.
Talking to monsters may yield some interesting answers and
solutions for the Quests. Some monsters might have the Tetris
ROM, buy it. (or destroy the monster and risk the Tetris ROM
being dissolved)
I think this should be good enough to get you guys started.
Xenon Out.
----------
You can download copies of this newsletter, upload
submissions, or whatever from the following bulletin board
system:
The Not-Yet-Named bbs
Node #1: (602) 544-4655 (V.32)
Node #2: (602) xxx-xxxx (USR DUAL) (Temp Down)
@@LODNEWS2
Land Of Devastation News
Volume 1 Number 2
Editor: Scott M. Baker
Contents
1) Welcome to Issue Number Two!......Scott Baker
2) Version 3.30: Team Support........Scott Baker
3) Some Tips for Advanced Players....Art Rainy
4) Special Questing..................Gurlock The Almighty
5) Crippleware/Bonusware/Delayware...Scott Baker
6) The Death of Nuke Man.............Pit Bull (James Cox)
7) Salvation of the Puritron I.......Pit Bull (James Cox)
8) People I wish to thank............Scott Baker
9) Letters to the Editor.............n/a
Welcome to Issue Number Two!
By Scott M. Baker
Welcome to the second issue of LODNEWS. If everything
goes as planned, then this issue will be released on the
same date as Land of Devastation version 3.30 which has
some nice new features. (See the section about version
3.30 below)
We're still running a bit low on user submissions. I
know there are many of you out there playing Land Of
Devastation, so how about sharing your knowledge and
strategies with the rest of us? Or why not personalize
your character by sending in a short story describing his
history?
We'd really like to hear from you!
------------
Version 3.30: Team Support!
By Scott M. Baker
I'm very excited about version 3.30 and I hope some of
you are too. This is the first version of LOD that has
team support built in! You can now band together with your
comrades! For you lower players out there, teaming up will
allow you to make some progress against those higher above
you.
So what can a team of lower players do to fight
someone immensely larger than them? How about laying siege
to your enemy's fortresses? Although a fortress's defenses
may be great and powerful, a band of determined players
can exhaust the fortress's energy supply, effectively
neutralizing it's defenses. Then you just walk in and take
inventory of your new home! Or perhaps you sell out it's
defenses and self destruct the fortress! That ought to get
your adversary more than just slightly upset.
A prime advantage for team play is a pooling of
resources. Sharing fortresses can be a great advantage.
For example, you may have more Warper/5's then you know
what to do with, but your friends may be in desperate need
for a warper. So, leave it in your fortress and your
teammate [assuming he has your fortress's password] can
pick it up when he needs it.
Those are all things that you could previously do on
your own. So, what does the new built in team support
grant you?
First of all, if you buy a smart mine and set it
somewhere, it is smart enough not only to spare your life
if you re-enter the area, but your teammates as well. The
nice thing about mines is that an adventurer never knows
how many are there. This element of uncertainty can allow
you to build up a decent defense around an important area
(such as your favorite fortress!)
Secondly, your teammates can view the location of your
fortresses (with the fortlist ROM and with the fortress
teleporter command) and teleport to/from them for free.
This allows you to set up a "transportation network". One
of you could build and maintain a fortress by Sacre Base,
another by Freedom City, and another by the Death Warrior
camp. Instantly, you have the capability to travel between
three of the main cities!
------------
Some Tips for Advanced LOD Players
By Art Rainy
Warpers--The EM-Warp program always uses the highest
numbered warper in your inventory. Free up inventory
slots by always placing your lowest numbered warper
highest in your inventory. That should eliminate the
problem of two or three warpers with only one warp left on
them.
[Editors note: Making the EM-Warp program a bit smarter
about which Warper is used is on my list of things to do,
so the above may or may not be valid at the time you read
this]
Stealth fields and Inviroblurs--These units operate
cumulatively. The use of multiple units can double your
chances of increasing those valuable experience points or
of surviving as you sneak away from dangerous territory.
Kill Objects--Most players quickly learn the advantage of
leaving items where they fall if they need neither its
cash value or its advantage in conflict. Thus they
exchange items of value and bypass Sacre Base. However,
when most players have advanced into levels two and
higher, no player is interested in picking up daggers and
cloth armor. It is to your advantage to kill those
useless objects and benefit from the janitorial fee.
Sysops might consider raising that fee to more than $5 per
unit to further temp players to clean up the board.
Map the Board--LOD's intrepid designer has included
editing capabilities that allow sysop's to modify the
design of the map. Just because the Clone Center was at a
certain location in the last game does not imply that it
will remain there after a reset. To avoid confusion about
locations prepare a 125 by 125 grid and map the locations
of obstructions as well as those of cities and camps. You
can eliminate trips into cul-de-sacs and excessive danger
zones
--------------
Special Questing
By Gurlock The Almighty
[Editors note: The following gives information on solving
2 of LOD's special quests. Players who don't want the
secret "given away" may wish to skip this secion]
Ok now, the best way that a starting player can get
going quickly is to use the quests. Land Of Devastation
has many special quests. There's hard ones and there's
easy ones. I'll describe an easy one or two for you new
guys out there!
The first thing that you should do is perform the
steaks special quest. Do this when you are like level 2
or 3 (other wise you might get wasted). Ok - here's what
you do: Follow the road that leaves sacre base and keep
going east. If you come to any "T" intersections, then
choose the upper path. At some point you'll enter zone
#2, so start running from all of monsters (otherwise
they'll waste you). Eventually, you'll come to another
city. This city is freedom camp. Now, follow the
mountains south of Freedom Camp. You'll first see a pylon
(ignore it) and the as you continue, you'll run into the
horticulture center (HS). Enter the HS, talk to the
manager, and pick up Troy's Steaks. Then go back the way
you came - back to sacre base. When you will return, you
will have won the first special quest!!!!!!!!
The next quest is also pretty easy. First you'll need
to buy a pylonkey. Do this at either Sacre Base or
Freedom City. Remember that pylon you passed in the above
quest? Well, go back there. Now, try all the code
combinations at the pylon. Write down where you end up
with one. Important-- if you run into Xeboc, RUN FROM HIM!
or he'll waste you!!! Eventually, you'll find the
T.A.D.S.U. When you find it, you've won another special
quest!!!! (Now, you just gots to remember the right pylon
code [You wrote them down, right?] to get back to where
you cam from!]
If I remember, you got like 5,000 experience for each
of those quests! Wow! For a beginner, that's a level or
two!!! Plus you also get to talk to the tadsu and learn a
bunch of information! And theres more! Once you buy a
laptop, you can go to the computer store and pickup Troy's
Rom and get a whole lot of info!!!
------------
Crippleware/Bonusware/Delayware
By Scott M. Baker
As most of you notice, LOD is distributed in a manner
similar to shareware. The fully functional working version
is distributed to everyone. Those who like the program,
use it a lot, etc are supposed to send in a registration
fee (aka donation) to support it. Once a donation is
received, I enter their information into the Reglook door
on my bbs where they can call and pick up a code. The code
then enables the message "This copy is registered to xxxx.
Please thank your sysop for registering."
I have had several sysops who have told me that this
is not enough incentive for them to register. They say
they would only register if they receive something above
the current version. They want their registered copy to be
something better than John Doe's unregistered copy across
town. They want users to appreciate the fact that they
have registered. Before I continue, let me explain a few
terms:
Crippleware: In this method, the game is distributed
to the public with many of it's features disabled. Limits
on the number of players are imposed, etc. When the sysop
sends in the donation, he receives a "key" which enables
the full features.
Bonusware: Very similar to crippleware, but the
philosophy is slightly different. The full version is
distributed, but sending in a donation will get the sysop
some sort of "bonus". Something like an external player
editor. The problem is, there is a fine line between
bonusware and crippleware. Is removing the editor
considered "crippling" a program or is the editor a
"bonus" for registered users?
Delayware: This is where you put a delay in the
unregistered version. Something similar to "This copy is
unregistered. Please wait 10 seconds."
Annoyware: Here we find other ways to annoy the sysop
into registering. We could throw up a long message on the
screen every time a user enters the door. We could put in
a message attacking the sysop for not registering, etc.
As I said before, I don't currently use any of the
above methods. You get the full version whether you
register or not. Sysops who send in registrations simply
have the piece of mind of knowing they have paid for the
software, and of course, a message saying "Please thank
your sysop for registering."
As more and more people keep telling me they think I
should do something more, I am starting to consider it.
After all, LOD is no small project - it does require a lot
of my time and I wouldn't mind an increase in donations.
So what I would like is comments, what would people
think? Here is what I would do under each of the above
ideas:
Crippleware: (Out of the question - I hate crippled
programs)
Bonusware: Only give registered sysops the editor
package (LODxxxE.ARJ)
Delayware: Add in a 5 or 10 second delay after the
"encourage your sysop to register" message.
Annoyware: Make the user read a screen at the end of
the game (i.e. when the user quits or camps out) about how
his sysop should register, how important registering
shareware is, etc.
My question is, if I was to instate one of the above
policies, which one would people prefer? Right now, I like
the delay idea. 5 seconds isn't too long to turn people
off and it is long enough to make the "please register"
message stick in peoples' minds. If you have a response,
you can send it to me at the bbs number listed at the end
of this document.
------------
The Death of Nuke Man
By Pit Bull
I woke up to an alarming situation. I was no longer
within the safe confines of my fortress - I was laying on
the bare wasteland. It is pure luck that I am alive. A
single Biomutant could have done me in while I slept
unprotected.
But what had happened to my fortress? My protection
against this hellish land? I could just see it's
smoldering ruins a few meters to the east. The cause was
clear: Another warrior, one who should have been my
companion in this struggle for freedom, had ruthlessly
desecrated my base. He must pay.
I bootup up my laptop which had luckily been spared
from the attack. I typed in the commands to retrieve the
previous few days log. And I waited.... waited... for the
name of the one who had done this. The name of the person
who would suffer my vengeance.
And then it appeared: Nuke Man. Why had he done this
to me? Perhaps I shall never know. I had never met Nuke
Man personally. From the rankings posted in the troop
quarters, I could tell that he was nearly as good as
myself. Perhaps he was in need of some quick cash and my
glorious fortress caught his eye. Or perhaps he wanted the
glory of capturing the puritron parts himself.
Something else caught my eye in the log. Those two
words would burn in my mind for the next two days:
"Fortress Constructed". After Nuke Man had destroyed my
own home, he had constructed himself a fortress. This
would be my vengeance. I will find his fortress and show
him that what goes around comes around.
For two days I searched. Across the plains surrounding
Sacre Base, within the mountains around Freedom City. Even
as far as the EEEE center and then I found it. Hidden
around the bend amongst some impassable mountains.
I leveled my phaser-3 at the base's defense field and
fired. Electric fire shot up when the two energy fields
met. By now, Nuke Man would be panicking with the sounds
of sirens and alarms. I entered the moat surrounding his
fortress and I saw it - the alligator ... It was
approaching fast. I tried to swim faster, but it was no
use - MY right leg was nearly town apart by it's jaws.
Luckily I managed to reach the bank of the moat with
my life still intact. I slashed several times with my
electrolance, burning into Nuke Man's defense fields. I
took a few slugs from his robopistol. But I was more
powerful then his measly defense. The fortress's defense
field fell. Then it was just me and Nuke Man.
He had an electroblade. He must have thought that he
would be able to handle me in my weakened condition - but
he was wrong for my dexterity and agility were much
greater than his. He lunged forward, hoping to stab me
with his electroblade. One quick swing with my
electrolance and the electroblade, along with the majority
of Nuke Man's hand and lower arm was now lying across the
room.
He cried in pain and begged for his life. I was not
without mercy. I let him live. After all, I had gained a
new fortress - and I would not self destruct this one as
the foolish Nuke Man did when he conquered mine. I figured
that would be the last of Nuke Man - that he had learned
his lesson. But sadly, it was not so.
The very next day the log showed an attempted attack
on my new fortress - by none other than Nuke Man. The log
simply said that he had perished. But I knew what had
happened. That alligator in the moat - the one that Nuke
Man had bought - had a very full belly that day.
I hope this sad tale will convince those out there
that I, Pit Bull, am not to be toyed with. I have shown
mercy and let one evil one live, only to have him attack
my fortress the very next day. The next time someone
attacks one of my fortresses I may not show any mercy.
After all, the alligators do need to eat.
------------
Salvation of The Puritron Part I
by Pit Bull
It was a lonely day in the wastelands. When I awoke, I
had no special feeling of greatness - no idea of the glory
that would come later in the afternoon. No idea that I
would earn my place in the great plaque of the puritron
room.
I set out to do my usual exploring. First on my list
was the pylons. I had already mapped out two of the
locations and I was going to find the rest. These pylons
are of a powerful nature. Able to teleport matter all
around the wasteland. I wondered where the codes I would
try today would lead me.
The first one took me out into Zone four somewhere.
Not a very pleasant place. I was nearly killed by a Black
Widow before I was able to escape back into the pylon and
get back to Zone two.
The next one took me into some computer. The feeling
of disorientation was incredible. I think that I was
actually inside of the computer itself. The information
and insight I gained was incredible. Knowledge that would
help the fight for peace and the salvation of the
wasteland was in my grasp. I had also completed one of the
special quests. This day was shaping up tp be pretty good.
Then I tried another pylon code. This one brought me
to a strange room. The walls were made of a metal that I
had never seen before - something from beyond this world.
I walked ahead. A lone humanoid stood before me. I yelled
"I am Pit Bull ... Of Sacre Base ... I come in search of
the lost Puritron Parts". The response I received was not
very pleasant.
"I am Xeboc the almighty... Xeboc the all powerful...
I will destroy you!". I raised my weapons in preparation
for a fight. I sighted him in with my Comp Blaster. A
stream of electric death shot forward from my weapon...
and right into the wall next to Xeboc. Damn! I had missed.
We clashed into hand to hand combat. I hit and he hit.
Then I missed. He missed. I hit and I hit again. Finally
he fell. I had succeeded! Or at least I thought. I was
tricked.
The image before me vanished. I was fighting a
hologram. Xebocs voice came across the speaker, mocking
me. I would have to search elsewhere for this villain.
I prepared to leave. But something caught my eye - it
was one of the puritron parts. I reached for it. I ran all
the way back to Sacre Base with my treasure.
Defs Sacre and Troy Hadley were waiting for me. They
eagerly installed the part into the puritron room. "Well,
Pit Bull, you only have four more left to find" Defs Sacre
grinned.
And then I rested, knowing that I had accomplished
something great that day.... and preparing for what would
lie ahead. I was sure I would have to face Xeboc again.
And it would not be a pleasant experience.
------------
People I Wish to Thank
Scott M. Baker
In this section, I'm going to start listing a little
about the people who help me support LOD, who submit
information that isn't presented here.
Anthony Malone: Anthony wrote up the nice history text
file that is used in the HISTORY ROM / special quest in
LOD. His story fit nicely into the game and is much
appreciated.
Joseph Johnson: Joseph submitted me a very extensive
listing of combat strings for use in LOD. His board [place
bbs name here] at 212-893-2318 [Note: This is a correction
from the original LODNEWS2 where the incorrect area code
was specified], is running a highly customized copy of
LOD. I haven't seen it myself, but I hear it's quite a
thing to see.
Jonas Saunders: The infamous Xenon in my LOD game here
on the bbs. He's as skilled a bug-finder and playtested as
he is a LOD warrior! Jonas also happens to be the very
first winner of a LOD game!
------------
Letters to the Editor
Well, every newsletter/magazine has a letters to the
editor section, right? So here is ours! I've posted a few
messages out of my comments area on the bbs and a few of
the national echos to get things started, but in the
future, anyone who wants to, just mark that you would like
your letter to appear here and I'll post it up!
Scott,
Let me start off by saying that I don't usually post
messages, or write letters. Today I Installed LOD321
(from Wildcats(MSI) BBS). I have never been a fan of Role
playing games at all. But, somehow your is different, you
dont get sucked into it (although i played for 12 hours,
thats besides the point), anyway I am thoroughly
impressed, I have never seen such graphics/details (Pixels
and or ansi) in a door game, not to mention the plot of
the game. At any rate keep you the EXCELLENT work. You can
rest-assured that come pay day you will get whatever it
takes (I believe $20 or so) to get the game registered.
Craig Salmond
SYSOP of Craig's DATA Exchange (904) 483-2498 14.4k FREE!
PS, You need to hold a conference on how you got you modem
to answer flawlessly at 14.4k with a non-usr modem. Most
people I connect to I get a measly 9600, but not on your
BBS. keep on BBSing
-=-
Thanks for the kind words, Craig. I try my best to
keep LOD at the leading edge of technology and from the
comments I get, I see that I am being successful! As for
the modem, I don't know of anything particular that I've
done, but I'm glad it works!
Scott Baker
-=====-
Hey Scott, I really like LOD, and am grateful that you
got my registration up so quickly... I run a bbs here, and
want to get Galactic Warzone for it as well. Also I want
to be a Registered user on your BBS, so if ya could
validate me, I would Appreciate it. And thanks for the
great game... Wish I was able to Write games myself...
Thanks....
Wayne Gay
-=-
I'm glad to hear you like LOD, Wayne. With my current
registration system, I usually get registrations up on the
bbs either the same day they arrive or shortly later. As
for Galwars, I have sold the rights to Jim Kiersey who
will be continuing support for it. Expect a new release
from him very soon!
Scott Baker
-=====-
[From Joel Boutros to Jeff Hanson in Area Ooii. Subject:
L.O.D.]
JH -=>writing a door yourself.
Ah, but is it the next best thing to copying a door? Or
Copying 5 or 6 doors?
Let's see...OOII, TW1000, Never got SZModem working and
when I mailed the wanna-be he never replied, MechWars
never worked right... Gee, Jeff, you seem to be a
brown-noser to this guy...What else did he make that
wasn't worth 30 seconds to download?
Oh, tell the little bag of toejam that I _still_ can't get
SZ working after 1 year and a half. --- GEcho/beta *
Origin: Cosmix Station (913) 422-7345 (1:280/2)
-=-
Joel, I'm sad to see that you feel this way about me
and my software. Such negative comments are the mark of an
immature mind and an eyesore to the entire bbs community.
Let's start at the top. LOD is not a copy of OOII.
Galactic Warzone was written with Al Davenport's (author
of TW1000) support and encouragement. I'm sorry you
couldn't get SZModem to work - you might wish to try the
latest version which has new Async routines. I don't
recall ever receiving a letter from you. MechWars is
written by Shane Chambers, not myself, and it seems to
work fine on my system and many more across the country.
In addition to LOD, GW, and SZMODEM, I have written
NEWGAL (GWII), Door Driver, CMENU, CDRDoor, Locread, and
the initial Echodor mail reader. (All of which have an
established registered user base)
Jeff Hanson is a friend that I had mind the system for
a week while I was gone. And I must admit, he did a good
job here, possibly even better than when I'm operating the
bbs myself.
You seem to be quite full of criticism. Tell me, where
is some of the software that YOU have written that I may
download and evaluate? I'll be sure to send my comments
your way.
Scott Baker
------------
You can download copies of this newsletter, upload
submissions, or whatever from the following bulletin board
system:
The Not-Yet-Named bbs
Node #1: (602) 544-4655 (v.32) FIDO: 1:300/9
Node #2: (602) xxx-xxxx (USR Dual) FIDO: 1:300/29 (Temp. Down)
@@LODNEWS3
Land Of Devastation News
Volume 1 Number 3
Editor: Scott M. Baker
Contents
1) Welcome to our third issue!........Scott Baker
2) The Player Who Has Everything......Steve Lamb
3) Foxx's Hunters, Law of the.........Steve Lamb
4) Nuke Mania.........................Pit Bull
5) Lod Story..........................}{ighlander
6) Lod Suggestions....................}{ighlander
7) Delayware..........................Scott Baker
8) People I wish to thank.............Scott Baker
Welcome to our third issue!
By Scott M. Baker
The time has come for the third issue of LODNEWS. This
issue isn't as large as I had hoped for, but I decided to
rush it out with LOD 3.40 because I had a few users
submissions that I wanted to take care of. I wish to thank
those who sent me in submissions - your work has helped to
make LODNEWS a success!
Scott Baker
----------
Subject: For the player who has everything A.K.A "The
SysOp"
OK, so, you're a SysOp of a BBS running LoD and you
play that game. However, you find that you dominate the
game because you are the SysOp or the other players think
you dominate because you are SysOp. Here's a suggestion
on what to do and still play:
Play "Guardian." You know, they support guy who never
does the heroic deeds himself, but helps the hero (in this
case, the players), indirectly? Like the kindly old man in
the swords and sorcery genre of movies who tells the hero
to complete a quest which he, the old man, cannot
accompany, BUT can give you this to "help you finish your
quest."
In other words, since you are SysOp and can dominate
that if you so choose, dominate the game! But don't play
to win, play to help YOUR callers complete the quest for
the Puritron. However, in no way do I mean whip out the
player editor and give yourself god-like powers!
On my BBS, where a game of LoD just started, I play
LoD quite a bit, more than the time limits of all my
callers (what can I say, I like LoD). I'm currently in
the process of setting up fortresses in Zones 1,2 & 3.
These fortresses (which I call holds) offer low cost
teleportation, low cost medical & power, and weapons at
reduced price (but above the resell value). The whole
purpose of playing the game locally is to keep these
fortresses well stocked and defended.
LoD, unlike other "wasteland" doors, is difficult to
learn and master. Newbie's to the wasteland scenerio as
well as "pros" at the other wasteland scenerios can easily
get discouraged. The idea of the "public" fortresses is
to give them easy access to the nessecities, but at a
price... Not to make a profit, but to let them learn the
limits of *THIS* game w/o the discouragement of dying.
Unlike other games, if you die in LoD w/o a clone, it is
*VERY* difficult to return to combat. Death does take
it's toll in LoD.
On the other hand... If one of the callers nukes a
"public" fortress, the owner/keeper does have the right to
extract payment in the form of one life. :)
----------
[Date] : Oct 25th, 2022 [Time] : 00:00:00.00
[Subject]: Foxx's Hunters, Law of the
Ever since Defs Sacre, leading the Sacre Hawks, was
attacked and lost the puritron device there has been a
need for an elite group of warriors to retrieve the five
parts of the device. Let it be known that on October 25th
of the 2022 year of the old calander makrs the birth of
the Foxx's Hunters. Following are the x laws of the Foxx's
Hunters. Any who wish to apply must follow these laws
completely.
01: All information/weapons/armor/misc items are
property of the Foxx's Hunters. At the end of the day the
following procedures must be taken: a: All credits must be
deposited into FXHold. 01: Major Foxx can and will
authorize personal funds to be deposited into the Game
Account for the sole purpose of gaining interest for the
Foxx's Hunters b: All powerpacks/belts must be discharged
into FXHold. c: All medical supplies must be discharged
into FXHold. d: All items minus personal computers must be
dropped into the FXHold storage facility. e: All Puritron
device parts must be dropped into the FXHold storage
facility. 02: The sole purpose of the Foxx's Hunters is to
retrieve the five lost components of the Puritron device.
To this end the following procedures must be followed: a:
NO other recruits/fortresses are to be attacked or harmed
in any way unless ordered by Major Foxx. 01: Major Foxx
will order retalitory attacks as described under section
04. b: NO threats will be made by any member of the Foxx's
Hunters towards any other recruit or thier property. c: NO
assistance is to be rendered to any other recruit in the
form of credits/armor/weapons/information or misc items
unless otherwise authorized by Major Foxx. 03: Loyalty to
the Foxx's Hunters must be absolute. To this end the
following procedures will be followed: a: NO fighting
between members of the Foxx's Hunters. b: NO individual,
unauthorized strikes. c: NO willful destructiong of Foxx's
Hunter property. d: NO disclosing the existence of the
Foxx's Hunters to anyone other than fellow Foxx's Hunters
recruits. e: NO willful inaction on an offensive strike as
ordered by Major Foxx. 04: Offensive action will be taken,
as ordered by Major Foxx, under the following offenses: a:
Attack on or willful distruction of Foxx's Hunters
property. b: Attack on Foxx's Hunters personell. c:
Violation of Foxx's Hunters law sections: 01.b, 01.d,
01.e, 02.a, 02.c, 03.d, 03.e.
In a nutshell, ladies and gentlemen, you join the
Foxx's Hunters and you gain something and you loose
something. What you gain is a guarenteed safe place to
sleep other than Sacre Base and Freedom City. You gain
all knowledge and information that all other members of
the Foxx's Hunters have. You gain the weapons and armor
collected by the entire group. You gain the added benefit
of safety in numbers, in other words, if another Sacre
base attacks you, you know that the entire Foxx's Hunters
will not rest until they have paid equal to the injustice
done to you.
What you loose is the personal freedom to do what you
want when you want. The freedom to keep personal weapons,
to act in an offensive strike on your own, and to gain
personal wealth. But it is for the common good. The
Earth will be a better place. For it is easier to
overcome greater challenges from inside a group.
Secrecy of the Foxx's Hunters is paramount. The less
the other recuits know, the better off we are.
Information is power, and if they do not know that there
is a tangable force out there, nor it's name, they are not
inclined to attack the "all powerful" group.
If anyone wants out, leave the room now. However, you
are hereby warned, anyone disclosing this meetings events
will face the Foxx's Hunters. And a dead recruit cannot
identify it's killer...
------------
Nuke Mania
Pit Bull
I knew he would be back. I had fought him once before
and defeated him. And when I let him live without
punishment, he had double crossed me by attempting to take
over my fortress.
When I found his chewed up body floating in my moat
surrounding my fortress the next morning, I assumed I had
heard the last of the infamous Nuke Man. I carried his
body back to sacre base with burial.
But, to my surprise, the sacre base medics managed to
bring life back to his body. And nuke man lived again. I
didn't say much. I figured after his failure, he would
leave me alone. Not to mention that he was not in the best
of health to be fighting.
I don't know how he managed to do it, but Nuke Man
managed to befriend one of the larger player named
Sneezoid. Sneezoid, who had accumulated quite a bit of
wealth from scavenging the wasteland, gave Nuke Man a
pulse bazooka and a neutron sabre.
Of course, the first thing nuke man did was head for
my base. It took him ten attacks, but he wasted the
defenses and ravaged my supplies. When he was finished, he
self destructed my fortress. I should have know he would
do it.
Lucky for me, I had built a second fortress across
some mountains to the east. And nuke man didn't know about
it. Thank God, I had relocated there when he destroyed the
first fortress. At least I was safe in my second "backup".
I hailed Sneezoid, I explained my plight. Sneezoid
realized that he had bestowed his money into the hands of
a dishonerable worrier. And he realized that he should
compensate me for my trouble with Nuke Man. So he gave me
a whopping ONE MILLION dollars.
I equipped my second fortress with enough firepower to
defend against Nuke Man. Then I challenged Nuke Man to
come after me again.
And of course, he took me up on the offer. That night
Nuke Man returned to my fortress. Not realizing the
strength of my defenses, he attacked.
All that remained of Nuke Man was a charred corpse on
the ground outside my fort. The body was so badly burned
and decimated that I knew he could not be revived. I took
his weapons and armed myself with them. Now, nobody would
fool with me!
Then next day I would set forth to seek out another
puritron piece to save the land. When I was leaving
though, something happened that nearly gave me a heart
attack. I noticed a discarded receipt laying in the
vicinity of nuke mans remains. It said "Clone Center,
Inc."!
------------
Lod Story
}{ighlander aka Cory Doss
The sun was beating overhead hotter than usual, but
there was no way it could ever heat me from my cold sweat.
I had finally seen the phaser cache, and I knew that I had
to make an attempt to get into it. Only a seemingly
endless trip across wasteland and radiation hell was
stopping me from getting to it, and the Black Widow's of
the area weren't to thrilled about me being there either.
I was no match for the local monsters, so what was I
thinking when I headed for the obviously guarded cache? As
I neared, I noticed signs of life which made me twitch
with a nervous energy. I finally reached the cache, and
examined it closer. I made my way inside, and when I did I
found myself standing face to face with the star of
pre-holocaust video entertainment, Captain James Kirk of
the Starship Enterprise. Seeing his reassuring face
relieved me, but the relief was short lived when the,
obviously delirious, captain started babbling about how I
was going to steal his phasers! I was shocked as he
readied himself for combat. I had a split-second to decide
which long-range weapon I would use, the sure fire
grenade, or my newly aqcuired Pulse Rifle. I found myself
answering my own question as I fired my rifle in his
direction, it was the first time I had fired that weapon,
and the results startled me. He was knocked back at least
ten feet, and was stunned momentarily. His pitiful shot
was no match for my Energy Vest, and we locked together in
a fierce battle and hand-to-hand. He wore me down, as my
fire sabre was having difficulty piercing his armor, but
finally I broke through his armor, bringing us both down
to exhaustion. I knew that whoever took the next fall
would be the victim of the wasteland, but used that
thought to power me for my last and most powerful swing. I
thought my life was over until I heard his assuring cry,
letting me know that victory was mine. After that,
everything is a blur. All I know now is that I somehow
brought a piece of the puritron device back, and I am a
local hero. This all just goes to show that in a world
like this, heroes aren't born, they just get really lucky
for their entire lives.
------------
LOD Suggestions
}{ighlander aka Cory Doss
Ideas for enemy types.... A new military group calling
themselves the Warheads have sprung up in the southwest
central desert region. Apparantly an arms dealer back in
2003 had been stockpiling his arms here, and passed on
without letting anyone know about them. Now a group of
radicals have came across the weapons, and are using the
shelter as their home base. They are led by a deranged
military leader, who was a pre-war general in the U.S.
Army. They are also after the puritron device parts, but
for alternate reasons. They want the pieces because they
also are needed for a specific biological warhead the
group is working on building. They feel that if it is
created, the remaining humanoids would submit to them out
of fear. The types of soldiers in the army and there
leader are below..........
Warhead Soldier... Str: 24 Dex: 24 Agl: 24 Health: 34
Short Range Weapon: RazorLance Long Range Weapon: M-16 *
New Weapon * (Powerful Uzi,Weak Phas) Armor: Kevlar
Equipment: Ammo For Gun, Rations (5). Level:2
Exp:1000-1250 Money:1100-1500
Warhead Lieutenant... Str: 36 Dex: 36 Agl: 36 Health:
52 Short Range Weapon: ElectroSword Long Range Weapon:
Phaser-3 Armor: PlasmaVest Equipment: PowerBelt, Rations
(5), Communicator. Level:3 Exp:5000-7500 Money:3500-6000
Warhead Colonel... Str: 50 Dex: 50 Agl: 50 Health: 75
Short Range Weapon: GravSword Long Range Weapon:
GravBlaster Armor: EnergyVest Equipment: GravPack,
Medkit/50, Grenades(25), AccuraGoggles* Level:4
Exp:10000-12500 Money:8000-12500
The Leader... Str: ?? Dex: ?? Agl: ?? Health: ?? Short
Range Weapon: Nuetron Sabre Long Range Weapon: Pulse Rifle
Armor: Energy Vest Equipment: ?? Level:5? Exp:???
Money:???
New Items..... M-16, this would be a little more powerful
than the Uzi, little less powerful than Phaser-1.
AccuraGoggles, these help the chance of hitting with a
long range weapon by 5,10, or 15 percent depending on
class 1,2,3.
I hope you have enjoyed my submissions and there should be
more to come......
------------
Delayware
Scott M. Baker
Well, from the responses I got from the last
newsletter, I have made a decision. LOD now has a seven
second delay on loading and exiting of unregistered
copies.
I chose the delay of seven second because it is short
enough not to turn off the users and sysops out there and
it is long enough to make the unregistered message stick
in their minds. I've seen doors with rediculous 30 second
delays and such which sysops have outright refused to run.
I didn't want LOD to become one of those!
The delay was necessary for several reasons. The most
obvious being that I could use a few extra $$ in
registrations. LOD is a project that takes a lot of time
to maintain and I need to take some money in from it to
cover it's expenses and my time.
Another reason was that registered sysops wanted
something above and beyond the other unregistered copies
out there. They wanted users to notice that they had sent
in money to support the game. I hope this takes care of
that.
------------
People I Wish to Thank
Scott M. Baker
Doug Merha: Doug sent me a very nice submission of
monsters and a nice picture of a cyclops for the game. You
should notice several new monsters have appeared in the
outer zones....
Robby Eckert: Robby also sent in a plentiful amount of
monsters. Although I don't think you players will be
thanking him when one of his creations leads to your
demise!
@@LODNEWS4
[L]==================================================================[L]
[O] + From the Editor Patrick Reed + [O]
[D]==================================================================[D]
Welcome, one and all, to Land of Devastation (LOD). Scott Baker
has just released version 3.70, which contains a variety of
NEW features. Users might notice fewer delays while ANSI
graphics are being displayed. Scott has trimmed down the
displays to show only necessary information, which is most
evident during combat encounters.
GTERM 3.70 is also released with this version of LOD, and rumor
has it that there are some hot new additions to the graphics
and sound libraries. Be sure to try it out. This will be my
initiation to GTERM, and I am looking forward to the fun of it.
As the game documentation will state, I must advise you all that
GTERM versions earlier than 3.70 will _NOT_ function properly
with LOD version 3.70. Scott will reveal more to you about new
features later in the game documentation.
Included in this issue are articles from Christopher Darque,
moderator of the proposed _NEW_ LOD Support Forum on FidoNet;
and the famed Madonna, lusty wasteland adventurer.
LOD News is published on behalf of Scott Baker by Patrick Reed,
with new issues released as user support demands. Articles are
needed from users of LOD in order to help LOD News to thrive.
Send E-Mail to Patrick Reed on FidoNet Node 1:300/9, or at
Internet address patreed@coyote.com to submit articles for
publication. Topics include, but are not limited to:
CHARACTER STORIES
COMMON ERRORS & PROBLEM SOLVING
CUSTOMIZING
LOD DOOR SETUP
PLAYER TIPS
Everyone is welcome to write something up and submit it. Like
I said, we need user support. LOD News depends almost entirely
upon you all. Thanks in advance for your support.
Now, for the News ...
[L]==================================================================[L]
[O] + From the Game Author Scott Baker + [O]
[D]==================================================================[D]
Well, since I didn't get my submission to our editor, Patrick
Reed, in time, I'm throwing this in at the last minute, so the
formatting might not seems as consistant as the rest of the
newsletter.
First of all, let me address the subject of registrations. Many
people have questioned why I don't send out registration
packages with disks, documentation, etc. The primary reason is,
it's a lot simpler to have people just pick up their codes from
my bbs system. When A donation arrives in the mail, all I have
to do is just type the sysops name and data into the online
database, and it is ready and waiting to be picked up.
To pick up a registration, all you have to do is log on (call-
back verification is not needed - you may do this on your first
call), select "REGLOOK" at my main menu, and you will be asked a
few questions to verify your identity. Once that is done, the
bbs will display your registration code for you.
An added benefit of this system: If you ever lose your
registration code (hard drive failure, etc), then you can just
call the bbs up and grab it again.
Next, I would like to extend my appreciation to Patrick Reed,
who has taken up the task of maintaining our newsletter. Also
of mention is Christopher Darque, who is working on setting up
the LOD support echo as well as drawing up EGA images faster
than I can implement them into the game! Last but not least,
Chris Azure has provided me with even more of his excellent
MOD music for the game.
Scott Baker
[L]==================================================================[L]
[O] + Customizing LOD Christopher Darque + [O]
[D]==================================================================[D]
EDITORIAL NOTE: At publication time, a number of changes
have been made to LOD version 3.70. Some
of these ideas have been included in the
game. An errata to this article will be
published in the next issue of LOD News.
-- Patrick Reed
LOD provides a number of tools that let you tailor the game to
suit your particular desires. With the exception of the Ega
graphics almost every aspect of the game can be changed. This
opens up all sorts of possibilities that intrigued me because so
few games are open to any modification.
In doing so, I used all my years as a GameMaster and role-player
to make a game that was based on the concept that I use in my
BBS-based role-playing group, Zone Central.
Zone Central is a multi - BBS universe that is based on the
concept of our contacting the AlienNet, which as similar to an
electronic Network. In doing so, we found that the Aliens could
not tell that our Doorgames were not actual Universes. They
simply used the connections to begin what it to them the normal
exploration and development of a new Galaxy.
All the Members of Zone Central are Dimensional Travelers, or
simply Travelers. I wanted to use the customization of LOD to
make it fit much more tightly with this concept.
In doing so I realized that even though the tools were available,
there was little to help Sysops (from this point on I will use
GM, since that is what you become if you do this) actually use
the tools.
This article is an attempt to cover some of the basic steps you
will have to work through. I hope that it will be helpful. But
keep in mind that it is only a beginning, nothing can substitute
for the experience of actually working on the game and really
seeing what works.
GETTING STARTED
---------------
Before you do anything at all, READ THE DOCUMENTATION! I cannot
state this strongly enough. Read them, look through the values
in the editor and make sure you understand how things work.
Scott has always been quite nice about answering questions so
use that resource. At the end of this article I have listed a
number of NetMail addresses for myself, and I can always be
reached through Scott's BBS.
WORKING COPY
------------
To begin, never work on a game that is in progress. There is
nothing more annoying than having to restart a game because you
made a mistake. Players do not take this at all well. Always
set up a separate copy of LOD and work on it. That way you can
experiment in safety. If something goes wrong and you have to
erase it and start over you will not get angry messages asking
what happened to my character that I have spent 3 months getting
built up!
So a private working copy is an absolute must.
MAJOR PITFALLS
--------------
It is fortunate that LOD is a rather forgiving game. I have
found that most errors can be corrected without irreparable loss.
If you find that the game is generating errors when run you can
usually fix the problem and the datafile will correct themselves.
This is not always true, but it usually is.
One of the most common problems come when editing/creating items.
If you make a mistake in the work the game might not be able to
handle what you did. If a character has an item and you change
it the game will still think that it has the old stats, causing
confusion and sometimes errors. An easy way to test for this is
running the Rankings in NEWLODED. If the problem is centered in
a character the command will fail. Usually simply deleting the
item from the character will fix the problem.
Another major source of problems is errors in the Strings, Talk,
Monster, and Combat DEF files. It is very important to maintain
the structure of these files, if you do not then expect the game
to go boom.
Always make back-up copies of the original files to check
against. Also at each successful step of the way copy the files
to a back-up. That way, if you oops you will only lose the most
recent work.
GENERAL STEPS
-------------
Concept Development
Edit Map
Edit\Create Items
Modify Starting Stats
Edit Strings
Edit\Add Monsters
Edit\Add Talk
Edit\Add ANSI
Edit\Add Combat Strings
Edit\Add Tavern People
Edit Terrain Specs
Edit\Add Town Names
Write Special Docs
CONCEPT DEVELOPMENT
-------------------
The first step is to decide on the concept that you are working
towards. What about the basic game do you want to change.
There are really two different approaches to consider. One,
keeping the basic story-line of the game and adding to it. This
would mean that you are not trying to actually change the ideas
of the game, just add new things to it. All of the editing
sections that follow apply to this style. With the exception of
anything that is story-line dependant.
The second, and more complex, is to alter the story-line to
create a completely different environment. This takes much more
time and effort but can be quite rewarding. This article is
directed at this type of effort since it involves all the custom
features of LOD.
In doing a full customization, you will want to start with the
Story-line. What has happened to put the World in this state?
Who are the primary people involved? What are the conditions
under which the world operates? The subject of world building
is covered quite well in any number of Role - Playing texts.
If I tried to really cover that topic we would have a very long
article. Suffice to say that you need to investigate and
consider every aspect of the game.
In this article I will refer from time to time to Betelgeuse.
That is the name of the Zone Central LOD game. The basic
premise of it mixes the standard LOD story-line with the
Dimensional Traveler concept discussed above.
EDIT THE MAP
------------
This is where you should begin the actual work of creation. The
map is literally the foundation upon which everything else
should be built. No matter what you name them you will have the
same basic pieces to work with; Cities, stores, quest locations,
and the terrain Set.
The primary focus for Betelgeuse was to make the map much more
complicated. I put more in more mountains and limited access to
many areas to a single route. I also reduced the number of
teleporter pylons. To make the map more visually interesting I
mixed terrain types in a sort of gradual style. What I mean by
that is if you are moving from a large desert area into a plains
area you would first see small patches of plains mixed into the
desert. As you move closer, the density of Plains increases
until it is 100%.
You need to understand the concepts of LOD zones. The map is
divided based on distance from 1,1. Every 30 units you enter a
new zone and will meet a different group of monsters. Be aware
of this while you are placing things in the wilderness. The
farther away from 1,1 they are the higher the level of character
needed to reach them.
It is possible to modify the zones in that the monsters have the
distance where they can be found as part of their stats. I
found that having a few creatures that straddled 2 zones helped
to make things seem a little less artificial. You can also
reduce the area that a monster in which a monster will appear to
make them less active.
Give careful thought to the placement of the quest points. If
it is too easy for players to get all the Puritron parts then
the game will be over far too quickly. Use the whole map and
spread them out.
You can place a number of Sacre Base cities on the map to give
players supply points. One of the main reasons to do this is so
you can place unique people into each tavern.
The map is probably the single most important part of the
process. If it is too simply then players will get bored quite
easily. If it is too hard they will become frustrated. I tend
to err on the hard side; however, you can always compensate by
giving players some information to help them along.
Edit\Create Items
-----------------
The basic item set for LOD covers all the important needs. The
greatest area for change comes in the Fortress Items. There is
quite a bit of room for more expensive and powerful items.
I have always considered that there are two phases to LOD. In
the first, most of the players are low level and money is scarce.
Players slowly advance and build. In this part, the quest for
the Puritron is pursued very heavily.
Once at least a couple characters reach the level at which taxes
are levied the game shifts into Phase II. In this phase, which
lasts until the game is reset, players have large amounts of
money, and even low level characters can afford the most
expensive Items. Fortresses are rapidly constructed and quickly
fully stocked.
When Phase II is reached, the limitations of the basic fortress
items becomes obvious. A mid-level character armed with strong
weapons can destroy even a fully equipped fortress.
The other problem that you will see is the massive amounts of
money that the players will have. More powerful and expensive
fortress Items would solve both of these problems.
There are other possible solutions to the excess credit problem.
One is to set the taxation level much higher and the percent
much lower. This will increase the time in Phase I and reduce
the money flow once Phase II is reached.
You have a rather wide latitude in creating new items. A good
look into the items list will show that some are single purpose
devices that cannot be changed (the Laptop, Communicator,
Scanners, etc.) but many do allow for variety (Weapons, Armor,
Stealths, Ammo Packs, etc.).
In creating new items, try to fulfill a need. Look at what is
available and balance your new creation with the others. Cost
should be a big factor but also consider availability. If an
item can be purchased, then it is open to all. If it has to be
obtained from a creature then it is a much more special prize.
There are some inherent limitations that you have to observe.
As far as I can tell no weapon can do more than 99 pts of damage
on it's own (before strength adjustments are applied in the case
of S.R. Weapons). Personal armor is limited to 999 pts. I have
successfully created fortress shields that are 2,000 pts and
reactors that produce 1,500 energy; so, they are basically
unlimited. Most packs are limited to 99 pts as far as I can
tell.
Here is a new concept for you, InfoPacks. InfoPacks are items
that actually do nothing except carry information. I use the
rope application code for simplicity. The only feature of these
is if you 'Show' it you will get an ansi picture or text. These
can hold details on monsters, partial maps, special hints, or
just about anything.
Since items are a major source of game problems, I want to
restate that you must carefully read the Documentation. If you
look at the existing items and base your creations on those you
should be ok.
Modify Starting Stats
---------------------
LOD does give you the ability to set quite a number of the basic
starting values. Character attributes, hitpoints, credits, 3
starting items, fortress starting items, fortress costs and
taxes are all under your control.
Balance these to suit your tastes. Consider the strength of the
characters in relation to the strength of the creatures. Give
them enough to survive but not so much that life is too easy.
Edit Strings
------------
All of the basic text strings used in the game are in a few
files. These are the Strings.Def, Talk.Def, Combat.Def, and
Ansi.Def. Each of these are discussed in their own sections.
Strings.Def contains the general text used by the program for
things like the laptop, commands issued in the game, menu
selections and statistics displays. It is difficult to explain
what is in here as opposed to the other Def files. The simple
answer is that if you see it in the game, and it is not in the
Monster, Talk, Combat, or Ansi files then it is in the Strings
file. I know that is not a very good description, but if you
look into the files then you should be able to understand.
In this file, you have much of what the player's see. Since a
definition is difficult, I am going to give you some example of
what you can do with it.
In Betelgeuse I did global replaces to make the to change all
occurrences of character to persona. In a few areas, like the
Rankings display, I used traveler. I changed the string that
talked about the nasty tasting food packs to say, "The new food
packs taste wonderful!" All 'Quit' commands were changed to
'Exit Dimension' or 'Retire for the Night'. One of the simplest
things I did caught the most attention from my play testers, I
changed the laptop main drive from 'C:' to 'Z:'.
Depending on what type of modification you are doing you may not
need to work on this file at all. Or, you may change almost
everything in it. Unless you know the game extremely well, you
may want to change the things you know about, run the game a bit
and make notes on the things you wish to change.
In version 3.51 there is a program called COMPSTR, to edit the
Strings you change the Strings.Txt file and use COMPSTR to
compile it into Strings.Def. Version 3.60 uses a compiler for a
number of the Def files, check the Docs on the version you have
for specifics.
You have to be extremely careful to maintain the structure of
this file. The game has no tolerance for changes that violate
this rule.
Edit/Add Monsters
-----------------
The Monster.Def file contains all the creature specifications.
You can modify the ones that exist and create new ones.
The Zone structure has been discussed previously, so I will not
go into it again. Place your creatures in an appropriate area.
There are references to origin(x,y,z) commands in the file. As
of version 3.51, these do not function properly. I discovered
this the hard way when I created a number of lethal monsters and
confined them to a valley at the end of the map. When a few
play testers got killed by these creatures, far from the valley,
I realized that the commands were not functional.
Do not overlook the fact that creatures are the major source of
many items. You can make some things easier to find, or harder
to find by adjusting the number of monsters that carry them.
Balance is important here. Try to make sure that by the time a
player reaches the area where she/he might have to fight the new
creature they are strong enough to have a fair chance.
If you have any Role-Playing references you should have lots of
source material for new creatures. Your new Story-line, if any,
should also suggest possible new creatures.
On the simple side, I have found that the special quests will
last longer if you make them tougher. Doubling their hitpoints
and increasing their stats can make them something that even a
strong character will have to work hard to overcome. After all,
there are not many of them, and if they are killed too quickly,
the game suffers. Do not make them so strong that they will
never be beaten but they can stand some work, especially if you
have given the players more strength.
If you have created new items consider distributing them to some
of the monsters, especially weapons and armor.
Edit/Add Talk
-------------
The Talk.Def file is a great place to add details to your game.
In it, you can give creatures a voice, and create tavern
Dwellers. For the monsters you can add personality, instead of
just the normal 'kill them when you see them'. If they have
some information to impart then the players will have a reason
to talk with them. You should mix the information in with a lot
of useless chatter so it is not too obvious.
Here is a trick that you might find useful. Have a creature
tell a player that it is carrying some important item. It is
best it this is set as an automatic item that the monster will
always have. If the player hears about it they can either hope
that it will not disintegrate, or they can pay the price to buy
it. I have found this to work well with InfoPacks of various
sorts. For example, the Black Widow Leader will tell you that
she is carrying a map that will lead you to a secret treasure
house. She is carrying an InfoPack named 'T-Map'. Most players
will pay almost anything for such information. A nasty variant
on this idea is to set the Disint factor very high so the item
will most likely vanish if not purchased.
Each city can have a number of Tavern people who will discuss
things with players. By adding to the current stock, you can
get information across to anyone who bothers to stop and talk.
I always try to put really useful information here. It is also
a good place to impart story points.
Since each city can have different people in it, do so! This is
currently the only way to make cities different. Once you are
inside a Sacre Base style city, all the options are the same.
The Tavern people are the one exception. Even if they do not
have a lot to say, a few unique people give the city something
to help differentiate it from the others.
Edit/Add ANSI
-------------
The Ansi.Def file holds all the menus, item descriptions, and
intro screens. Using the ANSIPUT program you can extract, view,
and modify all of these. A custom menu set really adds a lot to
the uniqueness of your game, even if you simply colorize them
differently. Of course you cannot change the keys that are used
on each menu, but you can describe the function in a different
way.
If you create new items you will want to make ansi descriptions
for them so players can have some idea of what they are getting.
The ease of working with the Ansi.Def file is what made me think
of the InfoPacks.
There is one minor complication to working on the Ansi.Def, and
it has to do with GTERM. Let's say that you have spent some
time and completely redone your menus. Each one is a master-
piece, colorful and functional. You get everything finished,
attach the game to the Board and await your first player.
Someone calls, hits the entry key for the game, it loads and
opens up on Sacre Base.
So far, so good. But when the player initializes GTERM the
trouble begins. As he moves from screen to screen, the menus
scroll out, they do not pop up as they should. You wonder what
is wrong.
Actually, nothing is wrong, but you have a bit more work to do.
You see, if the Ansi.Def you are using for the Host does not
match the Ansi.Def the player is using with GTERM things will
not work as they should. The game can be played but the player
will not get the instantaneous response they are used to. This
problem confused me for quite some time, but I have worked out a
solution.
What you will need to do is supply your Ansi.Def file to the
players. If they use it with their GTERM they will not have any
problems. But, wait, what if they wish to play standard games
as well? My solution to this is to provide both your Ansi.Def
file and the Standard Ansi.Def file in whatever archive format
is popular in your area. Along with this add a couple of simple
batch files. Most people have a key on their communications
program to start GTERM. They will simply have to add two more
keys.
One of these will unarchive your Ansi.Def file into the GTERM
directory, and the other will unarchive the standard Ansi.Def
file into the GTERM directory.
It is actually simpler than it sounds. And of course, if your
players only play on your game, then they simply replace the
standard Ansi.Def file with your modified one and they are in
business.
If you are going to really make a custom LOD game, the slight
pain of the GTERM problem is worth overcoming. Nothing makes a
game more unique than special menus. And it really is easy to
handle.
Edit/Add Combat Strings
-----------------------
I am not going to say a lot about the Combat strings. It is all
of the things that blur by as you hank and slash through a fight.
You can edit them and even add new ones if you wish. I like the
idea, but it is hard to get anyone to really read them.
The only part that is somewhat interesting is the definable
type codes. You can create special combat strings for a
specific creature or class of creatures if you wish. This would
allow for more specific combat. If you are creating a new class
of creatures you might wish to investigate this option.
I have created a number of Storms. These are very high hitpoint
things that are really supposed to be evaded. It is impossible
to 'kill' them. But since I have to work within the game system
they are defined as monsters. I have created a few new items to
serve as weapons, set the Disint to 100 and made a few combat
strings to support them. This is the sort of thing that
requires combat string work since storms do not have body parts
to be hit and never dodge out of the way.
Edit Terrain Specs
------------------
Unless you are working in an Ansi-only game there are only three
things that you can do with the actual terrain pieces. One, you
can give them another name, but that is limited since you cannot
change what they look like. Two, you can make them passable or
not. Three, alter the chance of an encounter occurring when a
player steps in them.
Renaming them is something that must be done with care if you
want to make the game make sense. Calling the swamp piece a
beach will tend to confuse players, since it certainly does not
look like sand. But calling the desert piece a beach is
acceptable. Just try to make sure there is some sort of visual
connection to the names.
Changing which pieces can be passed through can provide some
interesting mapping possibilities. While I was writing this
article one of my team was working on his first custom map and
game (convenient huh?). He decided to make both mountains and
rivers impassable. He then proceeded to make a map with a low
percentage of mountains but lots of rivers. It worked quite
well.
Each terrain piece has a percentage chance that an encounter
will occur. This can only be modified by stealth devices. If
you wish to create a bunch of stealth devices with varying
abilities, you can increase the encounter rate by turning each
piece up. You can also widen the range of levels by turning
some pieces up, and some down.
If you plan to make changes in the encounter percentages, you
should test the effects of the available stealth devices on the
new pieces. After such a test, you might wish to adjust the
devices effectiveness to suit you. Sometimes a player wishes to
explore and not have to stop every other step to fight something,
turning a couple stealths on can accomplish this. Think hard
before you take this ability away. If you have even run out of
ammo deep in the desert and had to sneak home, you will
appreciate this need.
Edit/Add Town Names
-------------------
As noted in the Sysop.doc file, you need to change both the
terrain name and the Town name to alter the Cities. Remember
that their are references to the ones that already exist in the
other files which must be changed as well.
Although, much work may be required to remove all references to
the Black Widows; if you want to set your game on another world
you have little choice. There is always the possibility of
recreating their background to fit your new concept.
It is quite important to be thorough. If your background
setting contains references to the Black Widows, and you have
renamed them the Slar'Kar, players will be confused and the game
will suffer.
Write Special Docs
------------------
It is a good idea to write a special file to be distributed to
players. This can contain story-line information as well as any
notes that they need to be able to handle your new world. If
you have created any new Ansi then you can distribute this file
with the ANSI.DEF.
I find that players like to have some info files that they can
read offline. Sometimes I write Briefing Packs and memos to
support the games that I create. Distributing little maps is a
nice touch too.
End Notes
---------
In this Doorgame, Scott Baker has created the most flexible
format that you could want. It has a great amount of potential
and I hope that this article will be of some help when you begin
the process of creating your World.
Christopher Darque
Zone Central
January 1993
[L]==================================================================[L]
[O] + "One Mean Mother" /\/\adonna + [O]
[D]==================================================================[D]
The Black Widow Gang was another matter... The first one of
those girls I saw was around the Death Warrior Camp, South of
Sacre Base. She didn't look like what I expected though...
Instead of the sleek, jet-black power armor I was briefed on,
this bitch was in clunky Energy Armor 500.
She leveled a Phaser 3 at me and missed by a mile, but I wasted
no time in heaving a Rad Grenade in her direction. The Rad
Grenades may not do as much damage as my Neutron Rifle, but they
ALWAYS hit, unlike a random shot, which would often deflect off
some of the fancy powered armor I had read up on.
Then we engaged in combat. Her Electrolance singing with
radiated power, while I parried her attack with my Neutron Sabre.
Suddenly, she fell on the ground, holding her back. Effects of
over-exposure to radiation, I suppose. But I had her. I showed
no mercy as I made one final slash into her Energy Armor, and
deprived her of the last bit of life.
I thought to myself, "These Black Widows are a bunch of WIMPS!"
I wondered why Defs and his new guys were having such a hard
time with them. Among the effects of the Black Widow, I found a
computer diskette simply labeled ROM:T-CODE.EXE. I wasted no
time in copying it over to my trusty Laptop, and prayed it
didn't have a Virus.
Thinking that I'd have no problem in handling any more of the
Black Widows, I began exploring the Pylons with the new data I
had just won. Suddenly, I was there! I had found the Black
Widow Base!
In moments, a Warmonger approached me, and began to boast about
how he had helped the Black Widows steal the Puritron from Sacre
Base. I thought about all those brave men Defs had lost in
trying to defend it, and shoved a Rad Grenade under his nose.
He just laughed when it went off. This geek thought I was an
easy mark, and like so many before him; he underestimated me,
Badly.
I ripped him a new belly button with my Neutron Sabre, and while
he stood there in sheer shock, I thrust my Neutron - powered
weapon as deep in his guts as I could and twisted it, just to
see the look in his eyes as he died. I pulled my Sabre out, and
he fell to the ground.
But no sooner had his guts colored the ground red, I turned to
see a Black Widow Leader. She was a handsome woman, and just as
deadly as she was beautiful. "So, some of you scum from Sacre
Base finally made it here, did you? Well, you will make a
welcome addition to our gang...
...In the slave pen! Hahahahahaha!"
OK, bitch... Here's where we see how well that fancy Widow
Armor 600 of yours can withstand the meanest Mother of them all!
A well-placed Rad Grenade caught her complete attention as I
began my attack.
She was quick. I had to give her that; and had it not been for
me wearing captured enemy armor myself, I would not have stood
a chance against her. My Energy Armor was taking a severe
pounding from her WidowLance, and as good as I was, I knew I
wasn't going to make it, but I decided to go-for-broke.
I decided to PMS all over her, and just went Berserk! I have
to tell you, it was a close one. I was down to less than 10%
of my usual health, but when she suddenly quit attacking and
fell on the ground, I was on top of her in a hot New York
second to give her a new hair-do with my sparking Neutron Sabre.
I wasted no time in examining her armor. It was cold and black,
and felt so deliciously wicked and sexy at the same time. I
scooped up as much loot as I could carry with me from my fallen
enemies, and snuck inside the Black Widow Base.
Talk about expensive! Do you have any idea how much stuff
sells for there? I guess the Black Widows never heard of Double
Coupon Days. I ended up paying 3 times as much for a new
Neutron power pack there as I would have paid at Sacre Base.
But I wanted to see how well this new armor would do, so I sold
off all the junk I thought I didn't need, and had the balance
put in my bank account for a rainy day and headed out the door.
[L]==================================================================[L]
[O] + LOD_SUPPORT Echo Christopher Darque + [O]
[D]==================================================================[D]
Hail!
I have started an LOD Support echo here in Indy. It will be
made available on the national Backbone as soon as possible.
If you would like to connect to it now, here is the information
you need:
NAME: LOD_SUPPORT
HUB: Syn'er-gis'tic BBS
SYSOP: Don Packwood
Address: 1:231/50
2400 Line: 546-1537
9600+ Line: 549-1835
Your Sysop will need to send a netmail with the following info
to get hooked up:
His net/node address
A voice number in case of problems
A Session Password
Modem Type/Speed
After that you can begin to poll Syn'er-gis'tic to get the Echo.
I have a lot of good things planned for it, and it should be
unique.
I can answer any questions you may have as well.
Darque
... (-) LOD Support Moderator (-) ...
* Origin: NYN BBS - MegaCD-ROM 2 CD Online! (1:300/9)
@@LODNEWS5
========================================================================
LAND OF DEVASTATION NEWS
Volume 3 Number 1
========================================================================
Editor: Dave Rosson
Contents
From the Editor:
Changing of the Guard....................Dave Rosson
Submissions Wanted.......................Dave Rosson
From the Author
Whats new with LOD!......................Scott Baker
Fiction
The Right Of Passage.....................JudgeDread
Rebel Without A Clue...................../\/\adonna
The Short Road to Chaos..................NORT
Heard On KLOD, THE Wasteland Radio Station...Erik Madison
News From the Wastes
Politics, Propaganda, and the Puritron...JudgeDread
Scenario Custimization
Critters and Quests......................Dave Rosson
Team LOD: Data On Some of the Big Names in the Wasteland
Ray Bacon, Christopher Darque, Dave Rosson, & Tristan Walling
[L]==================================================================[L]
[O] + Changing of the Guard Dave Rosson + [O]
[D]==================================================================[D]
First of I would like to apologize for the late date of this
document's release. Life has a tendency of getting in the way of
important things.....
To make a long story short, I'm the guy chosen to replace Patrick
Reed as the LOD Newsletter Editor, because he had to resign from the
post do to other pressing engagements. Some of you may recognize my
name from the Pictures.IDX file or the Land echo on Fidonet. I've been
involved with LOD since....since....well, try to find the first version
to have the Loki in it: They and some other monsters and the Cyclops
picture where my first submission. Most recently I helped devise the
two newest puritron quests and made many of 4.0s new graphics.
I've put my plans for world conquest on hold for the moment and have
started to experiment (SUGGESTIONS ARE WELCOME) with the design of
newsletter, attempting to pull the best aspects of earlier issues. It
would also help to see more submissions, so the newsletter can be
released more often.
But enough theory.
[L]==================================================================[L]
[O] + Submissions Wanted Dave Rosson + [O]
[D]==================================================================[D]
What is a newsletter without articles? I suppose it could be just
Scott announcing things, but there are better venues for that sort of
thing. Put simply, we need your help. When you do send submissions
though, could you please make it clear if you want the authorship
credits to be your real name, game pseudonym, or both.
*What sort of articles do we NOT want?
--Alterations & Bug Reports: If its something that requires
changes to main LOD code or documents, its best sent through
the Fido LAND echo or to Scott's address.
*What sort of articles do we want?
--Fiction: A nice story of the Wasteland is always entertaining.
--Scenario Custimization: Lots of articles can fit here
-Techniques that can be used to build better scenarios.
-Tricks that produce useful effects in the game.
-Genobj Code: The new Genobj can do all sorts of special
things, and sharing what you use them for would be nice.
-Unfinished Ideas: Have a plotline for a scenario but no time
to create it? Let others have a shot.
-New Gangs & Monsters: Monsters that are to redundant,
outlandish, or specialized for the conventional scenario
might be just what others are looking for.
-One Liners: Have some new lines for the Ghetto Blaster,
Communicator, Trivia, or the new Chaos Medallion? Send em.
--New Players Help: LOD can be pretty overwhelming at first.
Share your insights and tricks with the new players.
--Announcements & Reviews:
-Your Creations: Want to make sure everybody knows about your
cool new scenario or utility? Announce it here.
-Other People's Stuff: Want to sing the praises of, criticize
(constructively), or offer suggestions regarding scenarios
or utilities other people have made? Do it here.
--Other Stuff: I can't think of everything.
*Where do I send my articles?
--You can upload them to either of two BBSs. In either case leave a
message to me warning me what they are so I can check with the
appropriate sysop.
-Not Yet Named BBS (1-602-544-5655 and 1-602-797-8573)
-Starblazer's Express (1-619-951-5389)
--You can mail it to me:
-Dave Rosson, PO BOX 258, Victorville, CA. 92393
--You could drop it into the RIME Land echo, IF ALL ELSE FAILS.
--Incidentally, if you wish to call me voice (to ask about the
newsletter, discuss LOD, or whatever) the number is 1-619-244-5852.
[L]==================================================================[L]
[O] + Whats new with LOD! Scott Baker + [O]
[D]==================================================================[D]
Whats new with LOD? Currently, I am working on the Windows version
of GTERM.... Why Windows you ask? Isn't GTERM slow enough already?
Although Windows does have several drawbacks, there are many advantages
which will be noticable in the Windows Version of GTERM:
- AUTOMAP. GT/Win features a complete automap system. As you move
about in the wastland, the map is updated. You can then zoom in and out
of your automap, scroll around to see where you've been, etc. You can
also save and load automaps from previous sessions. I'm planning on
adding some sort of a print option in the near future.
- MAP WINDOW. The standard map terrain display has been raised from
3x3 to 5x5. This means you get a clearer picture of the surrounding
terrain as you move.
- DIALING DIRECTORY. This is the first GTERM with standalone
capability. You don't need to shell to it from a terminal program.
- MULTIPLE WINDOWS. If you're operating in 800x600 or greater, then
you can pop up an additional inventory or automap window or whatever
and put it on the screen wherever you want. In 1024x768, you can have
your full inventory visible at one time!
- VGA SUPPORT. Although we're currently still using the EGA graphics,
GT/WIN will have full VGA support. So as soon as our designers have some
graphics done, we'll be able to release them.
Requirements:
MICROSOFT WINDOWS 3.1 or greater
CPU: 386/40 or greater
RAM: 4 megs or more
Video: 640x480x256 (minimum supported)
800x600x256 (recommended)
1024x768x256 (good power-user setting)
Modem: 2400+ (9600 recommended)
As of this date, GT/WIN is currently in the beta test stages. The
beta version can be found on my bbs, but there are no guarentees that
it'll work. Call NYN @ (602) 544-4655.
NOTE: Although I am presently working on the Windows version, have no
fear, I WILL NOT ABANDON DOS. The Dos version is here to stay, and
within a few months, I may be releasing a VGA version of LOD and
GTERM for DOS.
[L]==================================================================[L]
[O] + The Right Of Passage JudgeDread + [O]
[D]==================================================================[D]
Today I am 15. Tomorrow, I will be 16, and hopefully a man. Finally,
I will be allowed out of this small, secluded city that has been my home
all these years. They have said the wastelands outside are to dangerous
for children, but how bad can it be? I learned about radiation in school
four years ago, and I even built my own intensity meter! Ahh, sleep
shall come hard tonight.
Breakfast was special for us today, double helpings of RS-32. We were
even given a ration of A-19, which is reserved only for special days
like today. It had a strange flavor, bacon-like I think my grandfather
once said. He used to tell us bedtime stories of days when food was
large enough to need a plate, not in pill form like today. How
inconvenient!
All passers please report to the ritual dome
Wow, we even get to meet the most respected of all Elders, Def Sacre!
"Children, shortly you shall embark on a great and perilous journey.
If you complete this challenge, and return home, you shall be an adult.
Your destination is our brothers and sisters in Freedom City. But be
forewarned! Entry is reserved only for those who are able to prove
themselves in a battle with the mutated giant. This creature, having
only one eye, is unable to notice those that approach with stealth.
Strike fast, and strike hard! Work together, as the wastelands are harsh
and without pity on the weak. The dangers are many, the sanctuaries few.
Stay close to our base for a few days, and get the feel for your chosen
weapons. Our soldiers have cleared the immediate areas of the harshest
of hazards, leaving only an occasional rat for you to practice on.
Perhaps even a credit or two may be found, in which case our stores will
be happy to supply you with stronger equipment. To begin your journey, I
give each of you 2000 credits, a small med-pack, and ration-pills for 5
days. I wish you all well."
That was five years ago. I am now a battle hardened mercenary. Last
year I came across the half-buried ruins of a city called Two-Sun, and
found enough duralloy to construct a fortress. I also found a storehouse
of paper, most of which crumpled at my touch. One piece which did not
was titled "Department of Energy, Atomic Studies Division." It listed
devices of great power called "Fusion Reactors" which are supposed to
generate great amounts of energy. Just what my home-base needs! Could
the Phoenix division be near the hamlet of Fe-nick-son?
So now I have a mountain-top fortress with power to last a lifetime.
Although I have cleared the valleys below of mutant scum, the skies are
still filled with strange looking men who scream "Loki!" every so often.
I need weapons, more powerful than this Neutron Sabre I bought off a
confused 'droid last week. I've heard a man named "Ed" is a whiz with
large scale computer controlled phasers, as well as numerous "bazookas."
Perhaps that Death Warrior I caught yesterday has heard of him. A couple
shots of Spinal fluid coagulator and he just may tell me...
[L]==================================================================[L]
[O] + Rebel Without a Clue /\/\adonna + [O]
[D]==================================================================[D]
Editor's Note: This appears to predate the last
article by /\/\adonna, "One Mean Mother" but I
found no sign of it elsewhere, so...
I remember Defs Sacre from the time before the bombs began to fall,
when the world with all it's insanity was still more sane than what came
afterwards. I had no idea he was even alive, of course...
Then one day, a runner from Sacre Base caught up with me, with a
dispatch from Defs. Seems some of his new boys were having trouble with
an all-female gang called the Black Widows, and thought I could come and
help them out of the jam they'd gotten themselves into.
I wasn't sure how I'd be received by the new Rookies at Sacre Base.
After all, the world before the bombs was pretty sexist, and I didn't
know if those prejudices would be carried over into the new nuclear age.
But Defs knew me, and he knew that I wasn't a weak sister. I had
just as much training as any of his new recruits, and could do anything
they could do. I just did things differently, that's all. Sure. Why
not? Since the bombs wiped out the last of the shopping Malls in these
parts, all I've kept myself busy with is plinking the stray lizards that
cross my path every so often. But I really wasn't ready for the first
mutant Valley Girl I ran into.
She must have been somebody's sweetheart at one time or another.
Even with her green face, you could tell that she had been very pretty
at one time, before the radiation got to her. She was even wearing the
cheerleader outfit from the high school she must have gone to before the
world turned upside-down.
"Like, I'm sorry, but I'm going to have to kill you, y'know?" she
said with a hair toss. Fortunately, I had been well-versed in ValSpeak,
thanks to my own memorable trips to shopping emporiums like The
Galleria. I even had a bumper sticker on my old Mercury Sable that
read, "I shop, therefore I am." I felt compassion for the poor girl.
After all, it wasn't her fault she looked like a page from an old Don
Heck comic book. "Gag me! Like, that is a totally bitchin' outfit you
have! Would you like, sell it to me?"
The Valley Girl had to think for a few minutes, but she finally
agreed to sell me her Cheerleader Outfit for $1000 American. I thought
I could have maybe gotten it for less at the Galleria way back when, but
I didn't haggle over price with her. After all, it was a cute outfit,
and I didn't have the heart to kill her when it wasn't necessary.
Besides, I get tired of cleaning up messes. We parted as friends. I
knew I'd see her again, and as I began the final part of the journey to
Sacre Base, I found an old Ghetto Blaster just like my Val friend had
been carrying. So I turned it on and began walking on to Sacre Base.
I then ran into an Insane Woman hiding behind a tree. I tried to
talk to her, but she was beyond reason, so the merciful thing to do was
kill her and end her misery and suffering.
And just beyond the gates of Sacre Base, I found a Mutant
Mother-In-Law. She ran at me with a rolling pin in her hand, as if I
were her errant Daughter-In-Law. But at least I was able to talk to
her. She had made some yummy Wasteland Brownies, so I bought some from
her to tide me over until I had the chance to go to the store. At
least, that's what I told her. If the truth were known, those were the
WORST tasting Brownies I'd ever had in my life, but I could hardly tell
her that. I nibbled on one just before I got to the huge gates that
surrounded Sacre Base. After all, my tummy was growling at me.
Some of the rookies thought I was a Valley Girl, and as I got up to
the gates, they had their Crossbows aimed at me! It was a good thing
Defs was nearby. "Hold your fire, you idiots! That's not a Valley
Girl!" I was glad Defs didn't spend all his time in bars anymore...
[L]==================================================================[L]
[O] + The Short Road to Chaos NORT + [O]
[D]==================================================================[D]
"The order you embrace will be your undoing!" spit the high priest of
chaos as our weapons locked yet again. I hadn't expected so hard a
conflict, even from such a high member of the Loki faith: Things were
different with this one, as if the fight was personal. As I watched he
performed a midair somersaulting kick that, while easily absorbed by my
armor, knocked the warper from my belt. The rules of the fight had
changed: Kill or be killed. Throwing caution to the wind I yelled like a
banshee and bounded towards him, my A-Mk. II glinting in the moonlight.
I awoke later in the hospital at Sacre Base. The doctor calmed me and
said "There was some permanent damage, but you'll live. You really
should invest in a clone sir." "I never lost before," I grunted back.
He answered that I had this time, and next time I might not be lucky
enough to be brought back. He also handed me a ROM disk that had been
found near my body.
When loaded, the disk turned out to be a some Loki propaganda. I
nearly turned it off before a menu selection caught my eye. With baited
breath I pushed the key to view it:
"My beloved Sara and I had been assigned, along with other Sacre
recruits, to investigate the wasteland and the recent reports of gangs
sprouting up. We were given the best weapons Sacre had available at
the time, and felt quite confident.
Avoiding encounters with Death Warriors, already well known for
killing eachother off to encourage strength, and the Traders who
scavenge the wasteland to sate their greed, we soon entered territory
that had unknowingly been claimed by the Widows.
The one that greeted us was tall and muscular, not unlike Sara,
dressed in a skin tight suit of grey and black flexible armor. She
paused to accuse men of destroying the world, and to state how her
kind would create order by reducing our role to menial labor and
reproduction. No great feminist, I disagreed, at which point she
attacked. Though her delicate LOOKING armor absorbed our first
blasts, eventually Sara and I prevailed.
Hearing laughter we whirled to face a man in red and black robes,
floating in the air and saying "She sought order with new principles,
failing to see that order itself is the problem. Do you understand?"
We were dumfounded, so he shrugged and flew off.
Following him only led to more Widows, till one night Sara shook
me awake: A person with glowing skin and a "Fang Gang" shirt was
approaching the camp. We hailed him in peace, but he only bared his
fangs and charged, screaming about hunger. He stopped only after
taking tremendous damage, saying "The hunger, I don't feel it now" and
vanishing after pushing a button on his belt.
We turned back towards camp, only to see the man in red and black
sampling our rations. "He sought internal peace, unaware that all
existence is in flux and can never know such a state. I am a Priest
of Loki: I understand such things. Do you?" Grinning at my confusion
he shot out of sight into the sky.
The ensuing weeks followed much the same pattern: Each encounter
with a new gang would invariably bring the comment of the priest,
asking if we understood. Of the Snow Demons he said "They seek to
retreat from the Chaos and isolate themselves in the cold. But Chaos
is all reality. You can not escape it." And the Serpine brought the
remark "These beings correctly embrace nature, but foolishly see it as
essentially neutral." And over the fallen corpse of a mighty Draku
warrior he muttered "Alas, the chaos this one brought by supplying
arms to the wasteland will be missed."
Eventually Sara and I decided to head back to Sacre, and didn't
set camp, so eager to go home that we kept going. The dark, heavily
armored figure that blocked our path was shaped like a man, but had
the face of a reptile. "I am a Cabal warrior," his voice wrung out
over Sara's Uni-Translator. "My lord Xeboc has chosen this planet as
his own. It is time for you to vacate it."
The fight was intense and he seemed immune to everything we could
throw at him. I only survived his glowing blade and alien strength
because Sara threw herself in the path of a blow that would have
surely disemboweled me. Freeing my gun I took careful aim at his
head. He stared back with huge snake eyes. I pulled the trigger as
he grinned his last words, "HAIL XEBOC!!"
Under that black night I knelt, cradling the corpse of my beloved
Sara, unable to staunch the flow of her red blood. "Damn this
wasteland!" I screamed, "Damn Xeboc, the Widows, all the gangs! Damn
Sacre and the futile attempt to bring order."
I broke down sobbing, failing at first to notice the tall cloaked
figure. I couldn't tell who or what he was in the darkness, and
didn't care. "Are you ready to die?" I asked.
"Always." he answered with a grin in his voice.
"I'm going to kill every living thing in this wasteland to avenge
Sara, starting with you, then the gangs, then...."
"What?" he asked, "You dislike the order the gangs are attempting
to bring to the wasteland?"
"Damn ORDER! I follow CHAOS now!" I growled, shaking.
"Then I greet you brother, for I to follow chaos, worship it,
become one with it. Only through anarchy can entropy be achieved and
the world cleansed. You understand that now. You are ready."
"What....." The word caught in my throat as he floated forwards.
He was dressed in Red and Black. The Black of my dark thoughts. The
Red of Sara's blood, and the blood of those who would die for her. He
was the priest. And at last I understood.
-- High Priest Kestol of the Loki
Kestol had been a friend of mine, a jovial man with a beard and a
joke always at the ready. He and his wife had vanished into the
wasteland years ago. Funny, how without the beard and the Sacre uniform
I hadn't recognized him as the high priest I fought.
[L]==================================================================[L]
[O] + Critters & Quests Dave Rosson + [O]
[D]==================================================================[D]
Critters
Nature has produced marvelous killers, from the smilidon (sabre tooth
tiger), to the veloceraptor, to any of the big cats today. Docile
creatures can be scary en'mass or when cornered (beavers have been known
to scare off bears). So are why the animalistic things in LOD just
humanoid-animal-tool users, except the weak ones in zone 1?
Step 1: Come up with a list of beasts that you like.
Step 2: Figure out what they could take out in a fair fight.
I.E. A veloceraptor could take out a death warrior easily, so
zone 4 or 5 is probably right.
Step 3: Base their attributes on the zone.
Step 4: Simple descriptions will do (something like "A bear
attacks" suffices, though describing the fangs and blood matted
fur is a definite plus).
Step 5: Look at the stats for the weapons used in your animal's
zone and create animal weapon and armor with the same stats (no
ammo required of course).
Step 6: Put DISINT 100 or players will be able to get the items
and you will have Sacre recruits biting people.
Quests
Nothing helps a customized set like its own distinctive quests. And
there are lots of ways to make them seem distinctive:
1) No Puritron Quests: The recruits can instead be 'Elimination
Specialists' blowing away gang leaders. Alter Talk.TXT and Strings.TXT
to remove mention of the puritron and add clues to who to kill, (be very
careful not to change how many lines any particular topic in Strings.TXT
has. Change the descriptions in Ptron.TXT and Bossmon.TXT, and change
the Ptron display in Ansi.Def and your set.
2) The Steaks, Eye, and Badge: You can completely change the
character of these quests: First go into CUSTOM and change item names.
Then go onto the Talk.TXT and Strings.TXT to make them agree with the
new names. For instance, in my setup you go to NORT's Base (the
Horticulture Center), pick up the data disk (steaks), take them back to
Fafnir Base (Sacre), and get the MissionInfo Disk (TroyInfo). Or you
could have to present the Skull (Death Badge) found only on Death (Kirk)
to enter the Gates of Hell (Death Warrior City) which uses the teleport
trick to send you to an area with lots of lava, mountains, and
some....interesting....monsters. Etc.
3) Talking Quests: I'm sure you are aware that at several points in
Talk.TXT a % and a number signify that the above keyword solves a quest.
And you can of course edit the conversations to your hearts content to
have other keywords solve those quests. But did you know that all
quests can be solved through Talking? If you are a believer in the
power of the spoken word, you can get rid of a few ROM quests and make
them talk quests instead. The targets are Tetris (4), Windows (10),
History (11), and SpWeap (15).
[L]==================================================================[L]
[O] + Heard On KLOD, THE Wasteland Radio Station Erik Madison + [O]
[D]==================================================================[D]
Wanted: 3 laborers needed for immediate work. Duties include light
demolition, duralloy shaping, phaser installations, and reactor
cleaning. Also need 2 techies for transporter realignments. Contact Joc
Dresnor at Fortress Constructors Inc.
For Sale: 2 vitron cells with 25/50 charges remaining. May be
repowered at Ed's Emporium. 150,000 credits each or trade for Phase
Armor, working or not.
Companion needed: Need partner for expedition to Kill Inc. Will share
all booty acquired during trip 50/50. Bonus paid for successful return.
Programmer wanted: Must be proficient in Z++ and familiar with the
AS/9000 architecture. Contact Hal-4000 for details.
In Sports News; Today at the Octoatholon Arn Wormron achieved a new
record in the long jump of 100.2 meters. He also tied the high jump
record of 229 meters. The Widowed Warriors destroyed the Black Death in
Cre-ball, 69-13, although the judges are questioning the use of neutron
assisted backhands. Typhoo Jogl lost to Helnor Actel in the phaser
try-outs. Funeral services will be held tomorrow.
[L]==================================================================[L]
[O] + Politics, Propaganda, and the Puritron JudgeDread + [O]
[D]==================================================================[D]
Editor's Note: Recruit JudgeDread recently brought in this strange
pamphlet that has been circulating through the
wastelands. We advise you deal with such material,
and the madmen distributing it, as you would deal
any wasteland threat: Avoid or execute...
This is to inform you of a great lie our leaders have laid upon us:
The Puritron. They have claimed this device will cleanse our world of
the radiation that pollutes it, and restore it the pristine beauty our
ancestors enjoyed. Bull! How do I know? Because I helped design and
build this device over 30 years ago. While my research indicated the
idea was feasible, in all actuality it did nothing more than "move" the
radiation. For every square mile near us it cleansed, another distant
area was polluted. The recycler section never worked, so Dr. Jack Sacre
suggested we replace it with circuitry similar to that found in a pylon.
"Out of sight, out of mind" he said.
Yeah, until I noticed on a journey to the Widows camp for some spare
parts that the ambient radiation levels had _increased_! This is why it
was stolen and disassembled. Our world is filled with many factions and
communities, not all of which have decided to make their presence known.
Why should their families be subjected to the horrors of the atom, for
our benefit? They just could not sit idly by and allow us to destroy
that which they cherish! So, do not be tempted by the "rewards" offered
for its return by our leaders. If in your travels, you should find clues
to its whereabouts, destroy it!
[L]==================================================================[L]
[O] + Team LOD Today's Victims + [O]
[D]==================================================================[D]
Name: Scott Baker Occupation: Student, University off Arizona
LOD monster you most identify with: Distraught Sysop (grin)
Hobbies: Programmimg, Salt Water Fish, Firearms
Favorite Books: None.
Favorite Movies: Star Trek, or particularly anything Sci-Fi
Favorite Computer Games: Ultima, Sierra Adventures, and ... LOD!
Commonly Used Quotes: Save Early, Save Often
Anything you want to say to LODers: Write Datasets!
Name: Ray Bacon Occupation: Commercial Pilot/Computer Tech.
What you like most in LOD: Ability to create your own game.
What you like least: Clues in the text file pain in the ass to edit.
LOD monster you most identify with: None.
Hobbies: Running a Multi-Line BBS, Golf.
Favorite Books: None.
Favorite Movies: None.
Favorite Computer Games: LOD.
Commonly used quotes: N/A.
Anything you want to say to LODers: Beware the next NAS dataset!
Name: Christopher Darque Occupation: Consultant & Counselor.
What you like most in LOD: DataSets & The Choices.
What you like least in LOD: Fixed Map, Lack of background activity.
LOD monster you most identify with: Tranlius Defender.
Hobbies: Games of all sorts, Lisa, Mind puzzles, & studying Life.
Favorite Books: Dune, Stranger in a Strange Land, Travels.
Favorite Movies: Star Trek II, Edward Scissorhands, Buckaroo Banzai.
Favorite Computer Games: AV8B Harrier, Ultimate Universe, Starfox.
Commonly used quotes:
Computer, Tea, Earl Gray, Hot, in a Cup this time.
Time is an illusion, lunchtime, doubly so.
Do, or do not, there is no try.
Anything you want to say to LODers: LOD has the potential for the rich
interaction that has made role playing games what they are. More
than just a door, this is a complete RPG creation system. Make
use of it and your only limitations are those you put on yourself.
Name: Dave Rosson Occupation: College Student, Computer Tutor.
What you like most in LOD: Talk.TXT and IsReals.
What you like least in LOD: The default pic and No friendly monsters.
LOD monster you most identify with: The Vampire Aretas.
Hobbies: Computer Games, RPGs, Writing, Painting Miniatures.
Favorite Books: The Judge Dee mysteries, the last 3 XXV novels,
WarDay, Dune, 2001, Call of the Wild, Jurassic Park,
A Separate Piece, Elison's Invisible Man, and Tower of Deception.
Favorite Movies: Amadeus, the 3 Musketeers, Beauty and the Beast,
Indiana Jones (1 & 3), Nightmare on Elm Streets 1, 3, & 6.
Favorite Computer Games: LOD, Wasteland, Starflight I & II, Ultima VI,
Neuromancer, Sango Fighter, & Romance of the Three Kingdoms III.
Commonly Used Quotes: Fascinating. Ni! Hmmmmmmm. I'll be back. Huh?
Anything you want to say to LODers: Embrace Chaos.
Name:Tristan Walling Occupation:Blues Critic.
What you like most in LOD: Strange Little Critters that need a pic.
What you like least in LOD: Going out into the wasteland to find one
of the little beasties that I made, getting lost, getting attacked
by that SAME @#* Draku Defender a hundred times in a row, then
running out of ammo and getting killed by that "little beastie"
that I was looking for. With no warper.
LOD monster you most identify with: The Energizer Bunny.
Hobbies: Drawing, making rhythmic noises, playing computer games,
going out and messing with people as much as I can without getting
myself killed.
Favorite Books: 101 Uses for a Dead Cat, Stranger in a Strange Land,
Roget's Thesaurus, and ElfQuest.
Favorite Movies: Star Wars, Alien, Fantasia, and ones with lots of
"hooters" in 'em!
Favorite Computer Games: LOD, A10, wolfensteiny-shoot-up-everything-
-that-moves types of games, and ones with overwhelming 256-
color niftiness.
Commonly used quotes: If I were me, which I sometimes am...
Just a little peril... F@*k it!
Anything you want to say to LODers: When wandering through the
wasteland, remember one thing and you'll be fine --- everything IS
trying to kill you, and there are always more. But, as they say at
Sacre base, you can win, just keep at it!
... by the way, does anyone have a spare warper?
@@LODNEWS6
LAND OF DEVASTATION NEWS 6
Volume 1 Number 6
Editor: Dave Rosson
---------------------------------------------------------------
Contents
From the Editor:
Ramblings.................Dave Rosson
From the Game Author:
Lod on the Web............Scott M. Baker
Fiction:
Christmas at Sacre........Andrew Wilson
Time Running Short........Unknown
Scenario Ideas:
The Future of LOD.........Scott M. Baker
Custom Device Ideas.......Scott M. Baker
Other:
Love and Registration.....Jenifer Aro
---------------------------------------------------------------
Ramblings
By Dave Rosson
- - - - - - - - -
You are now looking at the first LOD Newsletter designed first
as an HTML (World Wide Web readable) document. This either
means you are seeing the text version that will be included
with LOD, which is pretty plain, or the version on the internet
with a nice hypertext contents page and formatting.
As Scott points out in the next article Lod on the Web, Land of
Devastation has just hit the web in a big way. In addition to
his page and another fellow's, there is the LOD News Homepage,
at "http://www.primenet.com/~drosson/lodnews.html" on which
I've set up html versions of all the newsletters and FAQs that
I can find regarding the game (if you know of any others, drop
me a note).
Beyond that, Newsletter submissions are still wanted: Fiction,
lgpl code, scenario ideas, odd quotes for radios: Anything is
welcome. Aim your submissions to me, via:
E-mail: drosson@primenet.com (this is the ideal method).
Snail-mail: Dave Rosson, PO BOX 258, Victorville, CA. 92393.
Upload: Not Yet Named BBS (1-520-544-4655), making sure to
note Scott Baker there to tell me about it.
---------------------------------------------------------------
Lod on the Web
By Scott M. Baker
- - - - - - - - - -
The World Wide Web (WWW) is certain to have a massive impact in
computing in the near future. I encourage anyone who has not
explored this interesting technology to do so at once - you
will have access to a massive amount of information at a very
reasonable price.
In recognition of this, we are making LOD very accessible from
the WWW. Dave Rosson and I both have home pages setup where LOD
information may be found. My personal home-page is at the url
address "http://www.primenet.com/~smbaker".
Here is what you can find:
- Information about me :)
- Online registration lookup capability. If you've sent in
a registration, but are having trouble contacting my bbs,
then you may be able to pick up your code here. The
process is very automated and fairly easy.
- The LOD interactive monster guide. Here is information on
all of the monsters, indexed and cross-referenced with
their weapons and armor types. Postage-stamp graphics are
present of all the monsters. The whole thing prints up
rather nicely if you want a quick guide to what monsters
you might expect.
- Various HTML documents. I will be converting portions of
the user documentation, sysop documentation, etc to HTML
format so that it is more easily accessible. HTML prints
out very nicely, and I suggest if you are going to print
out the user manual that you try to print out the HTML
version as opposed to the plain ascii version.
- LOD distribution archives. I will always have the latest
version of LOD up for you to download.
- Links to other sites. You can easily navigate over to
Dave Rosson's page from mine. If anyone else has LOD-
related pages online, send me a note and I'll add yours to
the list!
---------------------------------------------------------------
Christmas at Sacre
By Andrew Wilson
- - - - - - - - - -
It was Christmastime at Sacre Base again, and everyone was busy
getting ready. Early on, Defs Sacre and the leaders of Sacre
Base had realized the need for holiday cheer in this grim new
world. Troy Hadley was hard at work playing Santa and building
Sacre Warrior action figures and vehicles for the kids - these
action figures were fully mechanized and had real lasers.
Jeffrey spent Christmas running away from a Mean Max figure.
Max was set to play Scrooge in the Freedom City production of
"A Christmas Carol," and Captain Targon had ordered truckloads
of frozen snow from Frost Bite, so that the kids could build
snowmen and have snowball fights on base. Some of the cooks
were making their world-of-ruin-famous Liarei egg-nog. And they
were decorating a Christmas cactus. The recruits that had
battled this mutant cactus to the death were busy picking
thorns out of their bodies.
And among other things, the Drakus were actually in good
spirits this Christmas and had built genetically-engineered
reindeer from their chromosome stock. Of course, those festive
Drakus paid for it when Black Widow command found out, but they
died happy, in any case.
---------------------------------------------------------------
Time Running Short
By Unknown
Editors Note: If anybody could pass on the author and true
title of this peace ('Time Running Short' is just what
I decided to call it) I would be most grateful.
- - - - - - - - - -
Time was running short. Chris decided to camp his character
out on an uncharted part of the wasteland and call it a night.
He had been going at it for several hours now and his eyes were
sore from looking at the screen. He logged out of his BBS,
turned the monitor off and went to bed. It didn't take long
before he had fallen asleep.
* * *
Chris woke with a start and looked around. The wasteland
countryside he had called home for the night was still there.
In the distance he thought he could hear the sound of a rad
hound barking loudly. Probably tearing into some poor humanoid
mutant, Chris thought. He checked to make sure no one had
stolen anything over the course of the night and took off.
He was farther from Sacre Base than he had ever been. To the
north was a string of mountains that kept a good large amount
of radiation out. To the east was wasteland surrounding a rad
field where some nuke missile had hit. To the south, more of
the same. He had come from the west, and had no intention of
going back until he had gotten a piece of the puritron device
or gotten himself killed.
In the distance he saw someone he recognized from his high
school days. Sapphire, or was this her twin sister Patti? There
was something odd about the way she was dressed, Chris thought,
as he examined her armor. It was black (sans two red triangles
that met at a point forming an hourglass shape). Both Patti and
Sapphire had always been bright colored people. Floral print,
mostly. He decided, since she hadn't seen him that he'd try to
strike up a conversation.
"Sapph?! Sapphire is that you?"
"Chris?" She turned to meet his gaze. Her blonde locks of
hair shone in the post-nuclear sun, nearly blinding him. She
still had the same great build and stunning looks. Her green
eyes were still as piercing as they were back in high school.
Her fair skin probably burned easily in the wasteland.
"Who were you expecting? The Energizer Bunny?"
Sapphire thought about this a moment, not entirely sure
if he was joking or not.
"Not really. What are you doing out in this part of the
wasteland? Last I heard, you were stationed at Freedom City
as a backup to help the convoy in the event of an attack."
"Nothing's changed. I'm out looking for Puritron parts.
Some raiders calling themselves the Death Warriors charged the
convoy and stole the thing."
"So then Sacre Base sent you?"
"Yep."
A thin sliver of a smile spread across Sapphire's face.
She had seen a poster in the Widow Warrior's HQ. "$500 for a
live Sacre Base soldier, $2500 for a dead," it had read, less
than three hours ago and she intended in making a few thousand
dollars for some more widow packs.
"Chris, don't take this personally,"
"Fine. I won't."
"But I've got to kill you."
Chris rolled this around in his head. Her, kill me? Her?
Kill me? He started to laugh. It started as just a giggle,
but soon he was slapping his leg to keep from crying.
"Laugh at me? Do you know who I've become?! Do you? I'm
one of the highest ranking Widow Warriors in the wasteland."
Chris sobered up immediately. He recalled messages on the
Sacre Base BBS. He knew what the Widow Warriors were capable
of. "You don't know how much it pains me to hear that."
"I wish it could be different."
"Likewise," Chris said, assuming his combat position.
The ensuing battle raged on for several minutes. Sparks flew on
both sides. Finally Chris's Laser Resist Armor Monitor beeped
at him. His armor was depleted down to nothing. The only
things that save his life now would be a miracle or good place
to go run and hide at.
Unfortunately, the nuclear blast that had happened fifty years
ago had melted all the rocks in the area. Boulders had been
reduced to a raised area in the Earth about half an inch high
and several feet around.
Sapphire also heard the beep and took full advantage of Chris's
distraction, slashing viciously at his neck. The last thing he
saw was Sapphire standing over him saying "Forgive me, Chris."
She raised the Widow Lance a little, readying herself for the
final blow.
* * *
Chris sat bolt upright in his bed. Beads of sweat glistened
off his forehead, his heart was pounding, and his alarm clock
buzzing at him, all in the safe confines of his bedroom. His
computer lay in the corner, the lights giving off the usual
glow of their yellow and green LEDs.
The room was dark, otherwise, with the exception of the eerie
glow of the Electro-Lance that he held in hands. Chris looked
down at the deadly weapon that had yet to be invented. "No!"
he cried as he saw the thing in his hands. Sobbing, he shook
his head, as if that would help to shake away the impending
future. "NO!"
The thought of fighting like that with a woman he idolized was
bad enough, but to be killed! He looked around, using the
Electro-Lance as a flashlight. The room was in it's usual state
of chaos. Clothes, books, armor, weapons, and some CD-ROM discs
lay on the floor. Chris got up, unsure of where the armor or
weapons had come from. The black energy armor had the same red
triangles as did Sapphire's armor in his dream. The black Widow
Lance also bore the symbol of the Widow Warriors, as did the
Widow Blaster. The CD-Roms were also familiar, EM-Warp
(Emergency Warp program) and a NOTES CD ROM.
Chris picked up the NOTES CD, put it into his computer, exited
the BBS software, which had finished doing the nightly
maintenance, and ran the notes program. The usual was there,
with one exception. The log read as follows...
C-COORD 1,52,41 ACME Weapons Inc.
C-COORD 1,104,1 EM-WARP Activated.
Manual entry: Chris,
If you are reading this it is to let you know that I am
back with my fellow Widow Warriors. You got lucky this time.
A Rad Hound saw me and decided I'd be an easy lunch. After
fighting you. I was in no mood or condition to face him, so I
warped out. I just wish things could have been different.
S.S.
P.S. Try using the Widow Armor the next time you're out that
far. You might last a little longer.
-END LOG-
Chris looked up at the clock. It was time to face school again.
Later that day, while Chris was at school, the Widow armor,
WidowLance, WidowBlaster and the Electro-Lance disintegrated.
hey had gone back to the future that they belonged in. Chris
debated whether or not to tell Sapphire, but then decided it
would be best not to tell her and let the future take care of
itself. It always had before, Chris reasoned. Little did he
know, Sapphire had woken up from the same dream that morning
with claw marks on her from her encounter with the Rad Hound.
---------------------------------------------------------------
The Future of LOD
By Scott M. Baker
- - - - - - - - - -
The future of LOD lies in the construction of user datasets.
This is really what I have been striving to accomplish for the
last several years. Many of you may not realize the extent to
which lod can be customized. With the LGPL programming language
that is now built into LOD you can easily add your own objects,
new places to explore, etc.
One very good example of this is Konnor McCloud's dataset for
version 4.21. Konnor added a ton of new items; I believe he
even filled the entire device definition file up! Some of them
were bizarre, like steroids or cherry pez, but others were
natural extensions of existing concepts, such as medkit-
rechargers and warper rechargers. All of this can be done by
ANYONE who has a reasonable knowledge of a pascal-like
programming language.
You don't really even need to know how to program that well
either. By cutting and pasting existing code, you can easily
make new objects that perform functions similar to objects that
already exist. I'll give you some information on creating
custom objects below.
The first thing to do is obtain the proper LOD files. To test
your creations, you will of course need LODxxxA.ZIP and
LODxxxB.ZIP, and whatever other items may be required for svga
graphics, etc. You will also need the dataset construction
package, LODxxxE.ZIP.
The primary files of interest within LODxxxE.ZIP are LCDOS.EXE,
COMPILE.EXE, and STANDARD.ZIP. STANDARD.ZIP contains all the
files for the default dataset and you'll want to unzip it
immediately and have a look at the contents.
The following files are used to create LGPL objects:
- lodlib.inc. This file contains definitions for function
calls that can be made to the lod game that is operating.
For example, such things as placing objects on the ground,
initiating combat, etc.
- lodvar.inc. Primarily structure definitions and a few
variable declarations. The structures in this file define
the record formats in which users and fortresses are
stored, etc.
- lgpl.in. This is the main file. It contains high-level
code and include statements for all the other files.
- miscuse.inc. Many miscellaneous objects are stored here.
You can get a good feel for how LGPL works by examining
the procedures here.
There are lots of other files too. LGPL files usually have the
extension of ".INC" and you can always find include statements
referencing them in LGPL.IN.
To add your own object, this is the process that you will need
to follow.
1) Assign a new "devapp" code to your object. All of the
devapp codes are listed in lodvar.inc. Just pick an unused
number and that will be the code for your object.
2) Using the device editor (inside CUSTOM.EXE), create the
device itself. You might want to put it in a store so you
can get them easily for testing. Make sure to specify in
the devapp field the devapp code that you chose in step 1.
3) Load up LGPL.IN and find the procedure USEITEM. This
procedure has a large switch statement that dishes out
control for smaller helper procedures that handle the
devices. You'll need to add a new line for your device.
For example:
case devapp_mydevice: use_mydevice;
break;<
4) Now you have to actually write the procedure to handle
your device. I suggest you create a new .INC file and
"include" it the same way the other includes are done (look
near the top of LGPL.IN).
This is where some programming knowledge is necessary. You
can of course just cut and paste in code from another
device that is similar to what you want to do and modify it
slightly. Or if you really know what you're doing, write it
from scratch. The name of your new procedure should match
the name in the switch statement in step 3.
5) Now you have to compile the LGPL code. This is done by
running LCDOS.EXE. If it won't work ("invalid entrypoint
called") and you're running windows, try LCWIN.EXE.
LCDOS will probably spit out some error messages, because
you probably mistyped something somewhere or used improper
syntax or something - nobody's perfect. LCDOS will tell you
what line number has the problem and you can load up the
file and try to fix it. LCDOS's error messages can be
somewhat confusing at times, but with enough practice you
will be able to figure them out.
6) Finally, you must compile the dataset itself. This is done
by running COMPILE.EXE.
---------------------------------------------------------------
Custom Device Ideas
By Scott M. Baker
- - - - - - - - - -
Now that I've given you some information on creating custom
devices, here's a few ideas for you:
- Finish out the stuff I've left unfinished! There's a few
odds and ends about in the game. If you see something that
could be dealt with more thoroughly, then you might want to
add some custom devices. For example,
HISTORY.TXT tells about Richard Sacre's orbital platform.
Maybe you could add a way to find it? Or a device to
communicate with the online computer?
That DRAKU HQ is pretty plain. Maybe the Draku's ought to
have some sort of secret weapons facility there...
- Potions are nice and easy to create. Have a look at
chem.inc... How about a potion to transfer attributes from
one type to another?
- Gadgets. Everyone loves gadgets... How about a mine-sweeper?
Or maybe some plastic explosives to blast fort defense
shields with? What about a nearest-pylon locator.
- Rechargers/Converters. An idea vastly explored by Konnor
Mccloud...How about a device to convert power packs into
armor rechargers? What about a do-it-yourself three round
burst kit?
- What about a more complex bar? I've seen other doors that
let you flirt with the waitresses, meet with secret black
market dealers, etc.
- Puzzles/Riddles. How about a sphinx that makes the player
solve a riddle?
- Build stuff. The good 'ol "use item a with item b to create
item c". Maybe you can add combine TNT and a detonator to
make a new sort of mine? What would happen if you hooked up a
proximity trigger to a fully-loaded vortex cell? How about a
kit to add molecular-bonding to a steel shield?
- Diseases... Let your imagination run wild! What about a
disease which causes to you occasionally get delirious and
walk to a random location?
---------------------------------------------------------------
Love and Registration
By Jenifer Aro
- - - - - - - - - - -
A little more than 2 years ago I started my BBS, Kerowyn's
Haven, in Duluth, MN. Somewhere along the road of development
I found the game LOD. I liked it a lot and it became a bit
popular for a while. One of my users, Detrix, liked it so much
that he wanted to register it for me. (He eventually became the
first person to win the game on the BBS).
Anyway, Detrix and I met at my college. I thought he was a bit
strange with the long hair and all (you can see an old picture
of him at my WWW site), but we really kicked it of. We had so
many of the same interests..about 1/2 year later we started to
date. Now 2 years later we are engaged!
And to think none of this would have happened if he hadn't
registered LOD for me.
:)
---------------------------------------------------------------